LOST PART 2
by DG Fisher
Summary: Prequel to Lost & Found...Now that the love of his life has finally said "yes" Adam is looking to the future and accepted the most terrible and wonderful of gifts - the opportunity to make himself into the man he chooses to be.
1. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 24 CHANGE IN PLAN...

LOST - PART 2  
  
CHANGE OF PLANS  
  
Chapter 24  
  
Adam was busy behind the bar of the gentleman's club on a cloudy, misty Saturday when Nate rushed in late. The blond man gave his friend a ghost of a smile, but wouldn't meet his dark gaze as he hurried past and down the back hall to the storeroom.  
  
Shaking his head, Adam's heart filled with a heavy ache for the pain his best friend was going through. He rarely saw him outside of work anymore and it was becoming clear to everyone that Nate had started drinking, and heavily.  
  
The tall, wiry man was losing weight he could ill afford to lose, and with his red-rimmed eyes, pale complexion, and shaking hands it was easy to see what was happening. He took in a deep breath when Nate came back and made up his mind it was time to meet this problem head on.  
  
Nate's head was bowed as he tied a bar apron around his waist and Adam watched his trembling fingers fumble with it out of the corner of his eye while trying to decide what to say. His shaking hand jerked and brushed against a row of shot glasses, knocking several off and onto the floor.  
  
Adam automatically went down on one knee to gather them up and Nate opened his mouth to say he'd get them when the front door crashed open. Everyone except Adam turned to see a tallish, raw-boned man rush in and they froze when he abruptly stopped and drew his gun.  
  
His light gray eyes, bright with rage, fastened on a man sitting in the far corner at a table by himself.  
  
"Pinkerton!" the intruder half shouted, "stand up and take what you've got coming, you nosy bastard!"  
  
The tall stocky man rose easily to his feet and white teeth flashed in a dark beard. "William, as usual you're reacting without thinking and just digging yourself in deeper," Pinkerton said calmly, his deep voice colored with a Scots burr.  
  
"Shut up!" the enraged man ordered and quickly glanced around the room. Nate nudged Adam slightly with his foot and looked down at him without moving his head. Adam nodded, knowing the other man was saying, "Stay down!"  
  
"Hey you! Behind the bar!" William said loudly and Nate jerked slightly. "Get out here!"  
  
Nate kept his eyes down, still looking at his friend as he slowly began to move out from behind the bar. Their eyes met in silent communication and he blinked once in acknowledgement when Adam lifted a pant leg to pull a knife from his boot. He gestured up toward the mirror behind the bar with it and Nate blinked once again before moving away.  
  
The intruder gestured with the gun for Nate to move further into the room and he slowly obeyed, sliding along the far wall toward Pinkerton who sighed in exasperation.  
  
"William you got fired for taking a bribe...you should be glad I didn't bring charges against you as well!"  
  
"I thought I told you to shut up!" William ground out, his entire attention focused on Pinkerton as Adam watched in the mirror over the bar. Nate was still slowly moving along the wall, watching the man's gun hand intently, and when he saw his grip tighten he knew Pinkerton was seconds away from being shot.  
  
Nate turned his head to stare into the mirror for a brief moment and prayed that Adam could see him. Taking a deep breath, he faked a stumble and threw himself to the floor, knocking over a couple of chairs and a small table.  
  
Badly startled, William turned in that direction, squeezing off a shot into the wall, exactly where Nate had been standing a moment before. He never had a chance to react further when Adam suddenly popped up, threw the knife, and vaulted over the bar.  
  
The man shrieked in pain as the knife sank deeply into his right shoulder and the gun fell from his hand even before Adam tackled him hard from behind and he landed face-first on the floor. Nate scrambled toward them and snatched up the gun while Adam held the wildly struggling man down.  
  
"Stop it!" Adam ordered through clenched teeth, but the man continued to struggle, so he grabbed his right arm and twisted it up behind his back. William screamed in agony and went still.  
  
The only sound in the now quiet room was the injured man's heavy breathing and Adam looked up to meet Nate's wide-eyed stare.  
  
"Why don't you go get the police?" he said calmly and Nate blinked a few times then pulled himself to his feet and dashed out the door. Pinkerton took a quick step toward the two on the floor, but stopped when Adam glanced up and shook his head.  
  
"Please don't come any closer," he cautioned and Pinkerton nodded, even as his face turned even redder with fury and his darkly intent eyes never shifted away.  
  
William groaned in pain, but Adam didn't loosen his hold. He just continued keeping the man immobile until Nate rushed back in, followed by two policemen. They quickly took over, hauling the injured man to his feet, and one dragged him out the door while the other motioned for Pinkerton to follow.  
  
The four men were gone in the blink of an eye, leaving Nate and Adam to stare at each other for a few moments until Adam looked down at the blood on the floor and sighed.  
  
"I guess I should clean that up," he said while shaking his head and Nate let out a short bark of laughter.  
  
"I'll help," he offered and the two men grinned at each other, glad that their impromptu plan had worked and started moving toward the back hall.  
  
"Geez," Nate said with a chuckle. "Not even a single, stinking word of thanks," he complained so Adam stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Why thank you Nathan. That fall you took was brilliant as well as a true work of art," he said and Nate started laughing helplessly again.  
  
"And I swear I've never seen anything more beautiful than that knife throw, my friend. Thank you so very much!"  
  
"You are so very welcome!" Adam responded with a wry smile and the two men quickly shook hands before continuing into the back hall. And for the rest of the evening they were elaborately, and laughingly, polite to each other to the puzzled amusement of the regular Saturday night crowd.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Two days later Adam was in Pat's office and Nate was alone behind the bar when he looked up to meet Allan Pinkerton's deeply intense eyes. He stared back, at a loss for words, and the other man smiled at his surprise.  
  
"Where's you partner?" he asked abruptly, and Nate blinked, desperately trying to kick his brain into gear.  
  
"Uh...he's in Pat's office..." he answered lamely, mentally kicking himself for sounding so stupid. Pinkerton's smile widened.  
  
"Would you mind getting him? I'd like to talk to you both."  
  
"Sure!" Nate answered and hurried toward the end of the bar. He cut the corner too close and banged his hip as he turned into the back hall, but didn't even feel it or hear Pinkerton's muffled laughter.  
  
Not bothering to knock first, he burst into Pat's office and was dismayed when he didn't see Adam bent over the account books spread out on the desk.  
  
"Damn it!" he said under his breath then almost jumped out of his skin when Adam spoke from behind the door.  
  
"Nathan...why didn't you knock first?" the other man's voice was more than just tinged with annoyance. Nate peeked around the door.  
  
"Did I hit you?"  
  
"Noooo Nathan, I'm just holding onto my nose because I'm so fond of it..." Adam pressed on either side of it with both hands. "I think you broke the damn thing."  
  
"Geez, I'm sorry, but Pinkerton is here and he says he wants to talk to both of us!"  
  
"Whoopee," Adam said sarcastically, still giving his best friend a dark look.  
  
"Adam please, I swear I will never ask you for another favor as long as I live if you'll just come on out there and be pleasant to the man," Nate was shifting from foot to foot in his excitement and Adam couldn't help but smile at the other man's beseeching look.  
  
"All right, all right!" he said and winced when Nate grabbed him by the arm and began dragging him down the hallway. Adam dug in his heels.  
  
"Nate - calm down!" he said low. "You don't want to look so damn eager! Besides, he's probably just here to say 'thank you'."  
  
Nate took a deep breath and let go of Adam's arm. "You're right, I'm sorry," he said, took another deep breath, and made a huge effort to get himself under control again.  
  
"That's better," Adam's voice was tinged with laughter. He reached out to squeeze Nate's shoulder and turned to lead the way back to the bar. When the two men emerged from the back hallway they saw Pinkerton sitting at a table. He stood and came toward them holding out his right hand.  
  
"I must apologize for leaving without thanking you the other night," he said as he shook their hands in turn. "May I know your names?"  
  
"I'm Nate Anderson and this is Adam...but he doesn't have a last name," Nate answered quickly and Pinkerton's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Ah! I remember reading about you two in the paper. Didn't you both bring in a gang of wanted criminals about a month ago?"  
  
"Yes we did," Adam said quietly, his own eyes narrowed as he took the measure of the famous detective. Nate suddenly had to bite back a laugh - the two looked so much alike at that moment.  
  
"That was a truly inspired plan and a hell of a risk to take," Pinkerton said with a brief laugh and Adam smiled his half smile.  
  
"Not really as big of a risk as most people think," he said, his eyes still narrowed. "Close attention to detail and a carefully thought out plan minimized most of the danger."  
  
"Very true and I wish more of my operatives understood that," Pinkerton answered and chuckled, seemingly amused by Adam's attitude.  
  
"May I ask as to why you have no last name?"  
  
"Actually, I DO have a last name...I just don't remember what it is," Adam answered seriously as his eyes glinted with sardonic humor. This time Pinkerton laughed outright.  
  
"I like your attitude Adam and I have to ask if you would be interested in employment in my organization."  
  
"Yes I would, but I can't accept without my partner." Pinkerton's sharp gaze turned to Nate and the blond man tried to plaster an intelligent, serious look on his face when he really wanted to jump up and down with excitement.  
  
"Very well then," Pinkerton said still staring intently at Nate and carefully noting how hard the blond man was holding on to his control. "Why don't you both come down to my office tomorrow morning and we can discuss the particulars. I imagine you will want some time to give Pat notice before you can start."  
  
"Yes we would," Adam simply agreed and Pinkerton shook their hands again.  
  
"Until tomorrow then," he said before starting for the door, but halfway there he stopped and turned back.  
  
"Tell me...have you ever considered using the last name of Eden?" he asked and chuckled when Adam grinned and shook his head. "Think about it," Pinkerton said, laughed again, and strode briskly out the door.  
  
Both men were silent for a few moments, Adam thinking deeply with his brows raised and his eyes hooded, while Nate raised one hand to his chest - he had suddenly forgotten how to breathe.  
  
"Oh...my...God," he finally managed to gasp out and Adam turned to give him a vague look.  
  
"What?"  
  
"OH MY GOD!" Nate repeated in a shout. "You did it! You brilliant, royal pain in the ass, you did it!"  
  
"I did what?"  
  
"You played that man like a fish! No one, and I mean, no one has ever gone toe-to-toe with Pinkerton and not been knocked back on his heels! Damn I'm impressed!"  
  
"Oh...that...it's not that hard Nate, I just refuse to treat anyone as being superior to me...at least not until they prove it." He smiled, gave Nate a pat on the back and turned away.  
  
"I better get back to the books and you better get back to setting up," he said over his shoulder. "And do me a big favor, would you? Remember to knock the next time you come back?"  
  
Nate watched him go, smiling from ear to ear, and said a restrained, "Whoopeee!" under his breath and got back to work.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
At two-thirty that morning Adam and Nate entered the house and quietly made their way to the sitting room where they knew Thea would be waiting as usual. And as usual she was sound asleep, curled up on the huge old sofa at right angles to the fireplace.  
  
Nate sat down on the low table in front while Adam sat down on the edge next to her. He reached out to gently stroke her cheek with his knuckles.  
  
Her eyes opened slightly and she smiled sweetly up at him for a second before suddenly reaching up to lock her hands behind his neck and dragged him down. Adam chuckled when her mouth found his and he braced his hands on the sofa cushions to push up until they were both sitting up. Nate started laughing helplessly and she pulled back to turn her head toward him.  
  
"Nate! What are you doing here?" she said and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes. Adam answered her instead.  
  
"We have some good news, Thea. Allan Pinkerton came into the bar today to thank us and ended up offering us both jobs," he said and she frowned.  
  
"As detectives?" she said low and her lips tightened when they both nodded.  
  
"Won't that be dangerous?"  
  
Adam was watching her intently and Nate's heart sank, suddenly realizing that her wishes now needed to be taken into consideration too.  
  
"I'm sure it will be at times, but I doubt anymore dangerous than walking the streets of New York City at two o'clock in the morning," Adam answered and she tipped her head to the side.  
  
"Are you sure this is what you want to do," she asked him quietly and when he simply nodded she sighed, put her head on his shoulder and hugged him tightly. Nate smiled, relieved that the question had been settled so easily. But he cautioned himself to be careful from then on to never mention anything that might frighten or worry her unduly. He reached out to touch her arm.  
  
"Don't worry Thea! I promise I'll be watching his back at all times," he said, giving her a huge, goofy smile and crossing his eyes.  
  
Thea actually giggled into Adam's shoulder. "Oh Nate," she laughed, "I feel SO much better now!" Adam laughed too and gave his friend a grateful look.  
  
"Well," Nate went on. "I can see you two are just as wide awake as I am, so why don't I go make some coffee and we can talk about it." He stood, gave them both a wide smile, and practically danced from the room.  
  
The two on the sofa couldn't help but smile at his unbridled enthusiasm, but their expressions sobered when they turned back to each other. Thea opened her mouth to voice her concerns, but Adam stopped her with a hand.  
  
"Wait. Before you say anything else you need to know this. I never considered going into that line of work, but I think this might be something worth doing. To actually make a difference in this part of the world, especially for you and our children." He took his hand away from her mouth to let her speak.  
  
"Our children?" she echoed and he pulled back to meet her blank stare.  
  
"Yes, our children. You do want them, don't you?"  
  
"Good God, I never even thought about that!" she said, truly astounded at herself. Adam started laughing helplessly.  
  
"You never thought about it," he gasped and laughed even harder at her nod. "I can't believe that!" He was shaking his head while trying to rein in his amusement.  
  
"Oh Thea," he said as he pulled her into a tight embrace. "Of course I can't be absolutely sure, but I believe no one has ever made me laugh as hard or as much as you do!"  
  
He pulled back to look down into her face and was pleased to see her eyes shining with happiness at the idea. "I'll take that look as a 'yes'," he said and gently kissed her lips.  
  
"Children!" she said in wonder and her expression turned serious again. "Be prepared mister, I want a whole houseful," she said in a 'no-nonsense' tone, starting him laughing again.  
  
"Yes dear," he gasped and pulled her back into his arms to hug her tightly, shaking them both.  
  
"Children," she said again and joined him in laughter, neither of them noticing Nate standing in the door and the bittersweet smile on his face before he turned and quietly went back to the kitchen to wait. 


	2. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 25 WHAT'S IN A NA...

Just In . Directory . Columns . Dictionary . Search Log In . Register Menu- Ad Blocker- Help- TOS- Credits- Privacy  
  
TV Shows » Bonanza » LOST PART 2 text size: (+) : (-)  
  
Author: DG Fisher 1. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 24 CHANGE IN PLANS2. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 25 WHAT'S IN A NAME?3. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 24 REARRANGING  
  
G - English - Drama/Romance - Published: 12-06-03 - Updated: 01-31-04 id:1630716  
  
LOST - PART 2  
  
What's In A Name?  
  
Chapter 25  
  
The next morning Adam and Nate arrived at the building that housed Pinkerton's New York City office at eight o'clock on the dot. Nate was trying his best to hold back his excitement, but Adam could tell he was fighting a losing battle.  
  
"Nate, why don't you let me do the talking at first," he said in a low and soothing voice, alarmed by the high spots of color on the blond man's cheeks.  
  
Nate nodded vigorously and Adam sighed as he opened the door and went in, with his friend practically walking up his heels. He stopped at the reception desk and an annoyed expression passed over his face when Nate bumped into him. Smiling pleasantly at the young man behind the desk, he knocked Nate back with an elbow.  
  
"Excuse me, we're here to see Mr. Pinkerton." The young man smiled back.  
  
"Do you have an appointment?"  
  
"Not a set time, no, but he did tell us to come see him this morning."  
  
"Your names please?"  
  
"Nathan Anderson and Adam Eden," he answered and had to elbow Nate again when he heard his friend's quick intake of breath, knowing the blond man was about to burst out in nervous laughter.  
  
The young man's smile widened in amusement as he quickly stood, went to the door directly behind his desk, knocked once and went in.  
  
"When did you decide to use that name?" Nate asked, still fighting back laughter. Adam gave him a quick, annoyed look over his shoulder.  
  
"When he asked for our names, and back off would you? You're breathing down the back of my neck!"  
  
"Oh sorry," Nate answered, got a firm hold on his sense of humor, and stepped up to stand beside his friend. The office door opened then and the young man came out with Pinkerton right behind him.  
  
"Adam! Nate!" he said with a smile, moving toward them with his right hand out. The three men quickly shook hands and Pinkerton turned to lead the way into his office.  
  
"Have a seat," he said as he dropped into his desk chair, and then silently surveyed the two men.  
  
"I'm glad to see you, I wasn't completely sure you would show up this morning," he said with a twinkle in his deep-set eyes.  
  
"Why is that?" Adam said seriously, tipping his head slightly sideways.  
  
"Well, my offer of employment was rather unexpected and your acceptance was immediate. I thought you might change your minds after having had enough time to reflect."  
  
Adam shook his head. "I don't say anything that I don't mean, and very seldom ever change my mind," he said firmly and Pinkerton's gaze sharpened.  
  
"I see," he said and continued to meet Adam's straight gaze for a few moments before turning his eyes to Nate.  
  
"And you are also quite sure this is what you want to do?" Nate bit the inside of his cheek to hold back a nervouse giggle.  
  
"Yes, I'm quite sure," he said quietly and mentally patted himself on the back for his restraint.  
  
"Good, I'm glad to hear it," Pinkerton answered as he leaned back in his chair and turned slightly sideways. "Now I have to tell you I expect exemplary behavior from my people. I know a great deal about your background Nate, but almost nothing about you Adam."  
  
"That's because there's nothing to know and nothing much I can tell you," Adam answered quietly then went on to explain. "I was attacked some months ago and thought to be dead, so I was taken to the morgue at Graylane hospital. The doctor who was slated to do the post mortem realized I was still alive, but I died on the table in front of her. She saved my life."  
  
"She?"  
  
"Yes, Doctor Theadora Westwood."  
  
"Oh yes, I remember hearing that name before. When did you get out of the hospital?"  
  
"A week after the attack. Since then, I've been living in her home," Adam's expression plainly said he wasn't happy with the personal questions he was being asked.  
  
"You still live there?"  
  
"Yes I do..."  
  
Nate quickly jumped in, and received a deeply annoyed look from his friend. "They're engaged."  
  
"I see..." Pinkerton responded while giving Adam another assessing look. "Have you set the date yet?"  
  
Adam sighed, "The tenth of July."  
  
"Good! Congratulations, and I assume you will want at least a few days off then."  
  
"Yes I will, but only three. We won't be going anywhere."  
  
"All right then," Pinkerton smiled as though genuinely happy for his new employee, and Adam relaxed, sure that the personal questioning was over now.  
  
A knock sounded on the office door, so Adam and Nate turned to look in that direction as Pinkerton called out, "Come in!"  
  
A tall, raw-boned man with cool gray eyes and iron gray hair opened the door and stepped in.  
  
"Adam, Nate, this is Jerry Culpepper, one of my best men. He's going to give you a quick tour around the place, and then bring you back here so we can talk some more."  
  
Jerry waited just in front of the door as the two men got to their feet, and then shook their hands as they introduced themselves.  
  
"Be sure to be back by nine-thirty," Pinkerton called as they went out.  
  
"Yes sir!" Jerry gave the man behind the desk a salute that managed to be both snappy and slightly flippant before shutting the door on Pinkerton's deep laugh.  
  
"We might as well start downstairs," Jerry said to his two charges as he led the way down a long central hallway. He stopped at a door set in the middle of the long wall and ushered them into a huge room full of ranks of file cabinets. A slender, brown-haired woman was at the front counter handing over several files to a young man. She turned around when Jerry came up behind her.  
  
"Kate, how are you? I didn't know you were back in town," Adam's eyebrows rose at Jerry's deeply respectful tone.  
  
"I'm fine Jerry, how are you? Have you been sniffing around any arson cases lately?" her sparkling eyes laughed up at Jerry and his cheeks flushed slightly red.  
  
"No ma'am, seems like no one has been inclined to commit arson recently."  
  
"Well it's no wonder, every firebug out there shakes in their boots at the mere mention of your name," she gave Adam and Nate quick appraising glances. Jerry turned even redder then realized Kate was waiting for an introduction.  
  
"I'm sorry," he apologized quickly. "Kate, this is Adam Eden and Nathan Anderson. Nate, Adam, this is Mrs. Kate Warne...she's supervisor of all our female agents."  
  
Adam's eyebrows rose even higher as she held her hand out to him first. When he took her hand in a firm grip and shook hands, she let out a quiet chuckle in appreciation of his silent message.  
  
"I'm very pleased to meet you, Mrs. Warne," he said, quite seriously and she nodded to him with a wide smile, before turning to Nate who followed his friend's example and shook hands with her too.  
  
"I'm giving them the guided tour," Jerry said when Kate turned back to him.  
  
"Ah! So you're the two new hires Allan was talking about," she glanced at the watch pinned to the bodice of her dress. "I'm very sorry, but I'm late for a meeting." Giving each man another brief nod, she started for the door.  
  
"Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you two settle in," she finished and was gone.  
  
"Interesting woman," Adam murmured and Jerry laughed.  
  
"I'll say! She's been with Pinkerton since '56!"  
  
"And she's in charge of women agents," Adam said, merely stating a fact.  
  
"She kind of reminds me of Theadora," Nate offered and his friend laughed.  
  
"Oh definitely!" Adam agreed.  
  
"Who's Theadora?" Jerry asked.  
  
"His fiancé," Nate answered and smiled at Jerry's frown of concentration.  
  
"That name sounds familiar...wait a minute! Is she a doctor at Graylane hospital?"  
  
"She used to be," Adam said, giving the other man a narrow-eyed stare.  
  
"You're actually engaged to her?" Jerry blurted out before he had a chance to read Adam's expression.  
  
"Yes I am," Adam said tightly, but then relaxed when the other man clapped him on the back.  
  
"Congratulations you lucky bugger, that woman wouldn't even give me the time of day!" he said with enthusiasm before turning to the clerk behind the counter who had been enjoying watching the exchange.  
  
"Beau! Why don't you show these two around the files and I'll be back in a few minutes to pick them up."  
  
"Sure!" the young man agreed and hurried around to open a door set in the sidewall.  
  
Jerry watched them go through and when Beau shut the door, he hurried from the room and dashed down the hallway to the stairs. He raced up the stairs, two at a time, and then down the center hall on the second floor, skidding to a stop at the last door on the right.  
  
"Hey!" he said as he stepped through the open door. "I believe each of you owes me a dollar, my friends...they're here!"  
  
A heavily muscled man of average height, with curly brown hair and almost olive complexion rose to his feet.  
  
"You're kidding, those two bartenders actually had the nerve to show up?"  
  
Jerry laughed. "That's right Mikey, and I expect payment in full today!" The other resident of that office laughed too.  
  
"What do you think is so funny John, you lost the bet too!"  
  
John shook his head, his open boyish face flushed slightly red with laughter. "Too true, but I made a side bet of two dollars with Jerry that you'd refer to them as 'those two bartenders' in your first sentence, so I'm actually ahead by a dollar."  
  
Mike stared at him speechless for a moment in disbelief, then burst out laughing. He walked over to his partner's desk and sat on the edge as he reached out to ruffle his friend's light blonde hair.  
  
"You are learning, me boyo!" Shaking his head, he laughed again. "Who would have thought such sneakiness lurked behind that sweet baby-face."  
  
Jerking his head away, John smoothed his hair back into place and grinned. "That's my secret weapon, now isn't it? Get a suspect to trust you and they'll tell you everything you ever wanted to know."  
  
"Damn it John," Jerry chuckled, "how the hell did you know he'd say that?"  
  
John shrugged, "I just did...you can't work with him for as long as I have and not get his pattern down pat."  
  
Mike was still smiling, but also giving John an intense look. "Something tells me I better start paying more attention to what you're up to," he said and the smaller man rolled his eyes.  
  
"Sure, and that will last all of about fifteen minutes before something else grabs your attention."  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Mike's tone was definitely bordering on annoyed.  
  
John's pale blue eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to answer when Jerry banged on the door.  
  
"Excuse me! Now is not a good time for you to have one of your little spats! You need to be ready and present a united front when Pinkerton brings them up here. Adam and Nate may have been just bartenders before, but let me warn you, both of them have a lot going on upstairs. And you two idiots are going to have to haul it to keep up."  
  
Mike and John gave each other bleak looks as the tall man turned to go.  
  
"But cheer up, boys! Who knows, maybe you might learn a thing or two from them," Jerry said over his shoulder as he left the room. Then he smiled a very wide smile, hurrying down the hallway.  
  
"My, my, my...this is going to be very, very interesting!" he said to himself while clattering down the stairs at full speed. He stopped outside the file room to catch his breath and wipe the grin off his face before going in to collect his two charges.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The three men made it back to Pinkerton's office ten minutes early, but Jerry knocked on the door anyway. When Pinkerton called out, "Come in," he opened the door, waved the other two men in, and then closed the door behind them.  
  
Pinkerton looked up with a broad smile, and motioned for the two men to take a seat, and then turned his attention back to the document he was holding. He quickly finished reading, signed it then placed it on a stack of similar papers set to the right side of the blotter.  
  
"Well!" he said and let out a deep breath. "What do you think of our organization so far?"  
  
"I am incredibly impressed," Nate answered calmly, and after slanting a sideways look at him, Adam sighed silently with relief that his friend had settled down and was being his normal self.  
  
"You are?"  
  
"Yes sir, I've read a great deal about police procedures and investigation. Now that I've seen your organization first-hand, I can understand why you and your people are both feared and respected by the criminal element." He stopped and steadily returned the older man's sharp gaze.  
  
Adam raised a hand to cover a smile he just couldn't keep back. After slanting another quick look at his friend, he turned his attention back to Pinkerton when the man spoke again.  
  
"What about you Mr. Eden?"  
  
Smiling at Pinkerton's subtle joke, Adam paused before answering.  
  
"Unlike Nate, I haven't done extensive reading on those subjects, but I CAN say that I'm also impressed with everything I've seen. In particular the attention to detail and your methods of recording information." He smiled when the man behind the desk laughed at Adam's oblique reference to their first conversation.  
  
"Excellent!" Pinkerton said and chuckled before continuing. "You two will be spending your first two weeks becoming familiar with every aspect of being a Pinkerton agent, from weapons training to questioning suspects. Did Jerry go over the code with you?"  
  
The two men glanced at each other, and then shook their heads.  
  
"No Jerry didn't," Nate offered. "But I'm very familiar with it."  
  
Pinkerton's eyes narrowed as he focused on the tall blond man. "I see....please continue."  
  
Nate flushed a little, not sure how to read the other man's expression, but went on. "Your agents do not accept bribes and never compromise with criminals. They cooperate with local law enforcement agencies when necessary, refuse divorce cases or those cases that will involve scandal, and they turn down reward money. Your general policy is to never raise fees without a client's pre-knowledge, and you keep them apprised about the status of the case on an on-going basis."  
  
He relaxed some when the older man smiled slightly while nodding his head. "No agent is to have any addiction to drinking, smoking, card playing, low dives, or any other socially unacceptable behavior."  
  
"Correct!" Pinkerton almost crowed and Adam held back a laugh at the man's enthusiasm.  
  
"Very good Nathan, you seem to have a better understanding of the code than some of my agents that have been here since the beginning!" He turned to Adam with a subdued twinkle in his dark gaze.  
  
"Do you have any questions?"  
  
"Not on that subject, but I would like to know if the assumptions I have made are correct."  
  
"And they are?"  
  
"First, I received the impression that you are just as interested in the criminal mind as you are in anything else."  
  
Pinkerton nodded in agreement and gave Adam an expectant look.  
  
"Second, I could see that you record every bit of information on each person that is available in an effort to know the character of each criminal AND the character of their work."  
  
"Yes absolutely!" Pinkerton interrupted, fired up by Adam's astute assessment of the heart of the agency. "You see, by putting my personal experience and my familiarity with these matters together with the information in our central files and the character of the work, I can often determine the person or person's who committed the crime."  
  
Both Adam and Nate were leaning forward in their chairs, fascinated by the picture Pinkerton was painting.  
  
"We also use the information we receive and record to teach preventative measures to businesses and to help the police. Especially in the area of handling and movement of money...after all, that's what the criminal element is usually after in one way or another."  
  
He paused to smile at how similar the two men in front of him now looked while wearing the same intense expression.  
  
"Now you understand why our field agents send every bit of information they come across, no matter how small, to be added to our central files. And why we record a detailed physical description as well as a picture of the person. This way, we can use our card filing system to cross-reference everything about each one, including their method of committing the crime. You will find that they all have something, something that they typically do that is as good as a signature to identify them."  
  
"Then the trick is to find that particular detail or group of details," Adam said low and the older man chuckled.  
  
"Exactly!" Pinkerton slapped his palms on the desktop as he stood and the other two men quickly rose too.  
  
"I think now would be a good time to take you upstairs so you can meet the other two agents you will be sharing an office with." He strode quickly across the office, opened the door and went out, not looking back and assuming Adam and Nate would follow. They hurried to catch up with him.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Mike and John were sitting at their desks on the right side of the room while Jerry leaned up against the wall near the door. All three men heard Pinkerton's voice rumbling as soon as he reached the top of the stairs and entered the second floor hallway.  
  
"So Pat has already hired replacements and only asked you two to stay on for another week? Good! Then you can start this coming Monday." Pinkerton reached the last office door on the right a few steps ahead of the two men following. Adam quickly stopped when the older man did and rolled his eyes with a deep sigh when Nate couldn't stop quickly enough and bumped into him again.  
  
He shot an irritated look at his friend over his shoulder, and when he turned back he saw Pinkerton had entered the office and was watching them both closely. So were Mike, John, and Jerry, and each man's expression said they were amused by Adam's annoyance. Pinkerton waved them in as Mike and John stood and walked over.  
  
"Adam...Nate...this is Mike Mahoney," he said and Mike held his hand out to Adam who grasped and shook it firmly then waited for the other man to let go first. Mike flushed slightly as his eyes narrowed, aware of the tactic and that he had been standing there holding Adam's hand for too long. He hastily let go.  
  
Pinkerton held back a chuckle. "Mike," he continued, "this is Adam Eden and Nathan Anderson." He indicated each man with a nod and Mike quickly shook hands with Nate and murmured, "Pleased to meet you both," while moving back.  
  
"And this is Johnnie Breckenridge," Pinkerton continued and Adam noted a slight wince pass over the young man's pleasant boyish face.  
  
"I'm very pleased to meet you John," he said quietly and smiled when the younger man's eyes briefly widened in surprise before they shook hands.  
  
"Likewise," John said, smiling up at Adam, and then quickly let go to shake the tall blond man's hand.  
  
"Glad to make your acquaintance too," he said and Nate smiled widely as he nodded at the youthful looking agent.  
  
Jerry had moved to half-sit on the edge of one of the unoccupied desks when he had heard Pinkerton coming, and he was now practically strangling as his throat worked, trying to keep his laughter back. But he quickly wiped the grin off his face and straightened up when his boss turned in his direction.  
  
"Adam, Nate, you two can fight out who gets which desk over here on the left, and don't worry about Jerry. This isn't his office, although you might think so with all the time he spends here."  
  
The tall man ran a hand through his iron-gray hair and gave Pinkerton a smart-aleck grin. "I can't help it that nobody's been setting fires or blowing anything up lately."  
  
"Hmmm...I guess you're right about that," Pinkerton said dubiously then turned back to Mike and John.  
  
"I expect you both to be here next Monday bright and early to start showing Adam and Nate the ropes. Neither of you have an assignment right now, so that shouldn't be a problem." He turned back to Jerry.  
  
"Jerry, please take them down to the accounting office so they can be added to the payroll," he said, couching an actual order as a request and the gray-eyed man straightened up as he nodded.  
  
"I have an appointment or I'd take you down there myself," he explained to Adam and Nate as he shook hands with each man again. "But I'm definitely looking forward to working with you both." He smiled as he made his last comment then was gone.  
  
The five men still in the office listened to his footsteps hurry away and Jerry had to clear his throat and swallow hard before he could speak without laughing.  
  
"Well, come on you two and welcome to our happy little family," he said as he moved past them. Nate quickly followed him, but Adam paused to sweep his sharp gaze around the room.  
  
"See you Monday," he said quietly and looked at each man with his half- smile and hooded eyes for a few seconds. John smiled and nodded in response while Mike frowned as Adam turned and strode away.  
  
As soon as he was gone Mike took in a deep breath and let it out noisily. "That big one's gonna be trouble, I can feel it in my gut."  
  
"Oh I don't know," John said softly and his partner elbowed him in the side, almost knocking him over.  
  
"WHAT!" he demanded, his gold brows snapping together as he frowned at Mike.  
  
"Just because he smiled at you and called you 'John' instead of 'Johnnie' doesn't mean you can trust him, chucklehead."  
  
"Mike, why do you always assume I have to agree with your opinion? And I'M telling YOU that if you have any brains to speak of under all that hair you'd be smart to stay on his good side."  
  
"Oh so YOU"RE telling ME now sonny boy?"  
  
"Yes I am, damn it, and don't try to drag me into some stupid territorial war between you two. And you know why? Because you will lose, you stubborn thick-headed mule!"  
  
The two men stared at each other with true hostility for a few moments until Mike suddenly started to laugh. "Thick-headed mule?" he gasped out and John flushed red.  
  
"I'm sorry, but sometimes you just push me too far."  
  
"I know, I know, but I still say the big one's scary looking."  
  
"I don't, I kinda like him and the other one too, even though they DID steal our idea about rounding up that gang."  
  
Mike was still chuckling. "Yeah I guess you're right, and technically they didn't really steal that idea. I mean everybody was talking about it and we didn't have a complete plan anyway. They figured out how to bring them in after all."  
  
"True," John agreed quietly as he walked over to his desk and sat down. Mike came over to do the same.  
  
The two sat there silently for a few moments, just thinking until John broke the silence.  
  
"You realize if we're supposed to show them the ropes next Monday it might be a good idea to bone up on that subject ourselves. Something tells me Adam won't be very happy if we get anything wrong."  
  
"Good God yes!" Mike agreed and reached behind him to pull two binders from the bookcase there. He paused to blow some dust off of them before setting one down on his desk and tossing the other onto John's.  
  
"Well let's get started then," he said, definitely unhappy. He opened his and started reading while John fastidiously cleaned all the dust from his.  
  
A few minutes later Mike grinned and slanted a sideways look at his partner.  
  
"Hey!" he said.  
  
"What?" John answered without looking up.  
  
"I always knew your were smart Johnnie, but when did you grow a set?"  
  
John's lips twitched as he kept his gaze fixed on the page he had been reading. The seconds ticked by and Mike was shaking with silent laughter until his partner sighed.  
  
"Mike."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Shut the hell up!" 


	3. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 26 REARRANGING

LOST - PART 2  
  
REARRANGING  
  
Chapter 26  
  
The front door opened quietly and Adam stepped into the front hall. He closed the door just as quietly and stood there for a few moments, listening. But the house remained silent and hushed and he briefly wondered where Thea was.  
  
After hanging his hat up, he made his way down the hall, through the kitchen, and into the back hall. His brows rose when he saw that his room door was wide open. He stopped in the bedroom doorway and smiled to see the woman in question standing at the window, staring out at Chester chasing squirrels in the yard.  
  
"Theadora," he said softly, not wanting to startle her. "What are you doing in here?" To his surprise she didn't turn around, she kept staring out the window as she answered.  
  
"Adam...would you mind moving to an upstairs bedroom?"  
  
"What?" his thoughts scrambled to change direction at this unexpected request.  
  
"Would you mind..." she started to repeat the question, but he interrupted.  
  
"I heard you, I just didn't understand the question - at least not completely. Why do you want me to move upstairs?" His gaze sharpened as he considered whether or not this was another trick to get him to give in, but decided it wasn't. Her expression was too serious and her stare too intent for that.  
  
"Well, I've been thinking and..." her voice trailed off and she sighed in frustration. "Lordy, why do I always lose my train of thought when I look at you?" she complained and he laughed as he held a hand out to her.  
  
"Come on," he said when she hurried across the room to take his hand. He pulled her out into the hall, into the sitting room, and over to the sofa. Sitting down with his back against the arm and one leg stretched out, he tugged her down to sit facing away from him.  
  
"Now," he said with amusement in his tone as he wrapped his arms around her and she leaned back against his chest. "Is that better?"  
  
"Oh sure, a LOT better," she said sarcastically, even as she snuggled closer to him and he laughed.  
  
"You can't see me now, so go ahead," he chuckled and she cleared her throat before plunging in.  
  
"We've never discussed this and I can't for the life of me figure out why, but I really need to know, especially with what I've been thinking lately."  
  
Adam blinked rapidly, trying to make some sense out of her words, and he started to get a faint glimpse of where she was heading.  
  
"What have you been thinking lately?"  
  
"About what you expect from me." He nodded - the glimpse was getting a little clearer.  
  
"You mean as my wife?"  
  
"Yes! I'm so glad you understand!"  
  
"Whoa, wait a minute. I don't really understand yet, so a little more explanation please." He smiled when he felt her stiffen and she took a deep breath.  
  
"Do you want me to stop being a doctor?" she let the words tumble out in a rush.  
  
"Of course not!" was his automatic response and she relaxed until he went on. "You ARE a doctor and nothing is ever going to change that, Thea."  
  
She ducked her head and stared down at his hands that were clasped at her waist. "I guess you still don't understand," she said in a muffled voice and he chuckled.  
  
"Yes I do and so would you if you had let me finish. I would never try to make you into something you're not or take your dreams away from you. You ARE a doctor and therefore you have to continue to BE a doctor. I don't want you to stop practicing medicine just because you're marrying me."  
  
"Thank God you DO understand!" she enthused and he unclasped his hands when she scrambled around to face him on her knees.  
  
"Thank you," she said softly in his ear as she pressed up against him and clutched him tightly around the shoulders. He suppressed a shiver when her warm breath curled into his ear and tensed when her lips brushed his neck.  
  
"Behave yourself," he said firmly and felt rather than heard her laughing.  
  
"Why?" she unfastened the top two buttons on his shirt and trailed soft kisses around to the hollow at his throat, and then down the exposed "v" of his chest. When she started unfastening another button he grabbed her hands by the wrist.  
  
"Thea!" he said warningly and she looked up at him with a wide-eyed innocent look that no one in their right mind would ever believe.  
  
"What?" she said and he almost started laughing when her eyes suddenly focused on his mouth and she rose up on her knees to kiss him. He instinctively thrust the fingers of one hand into her hair to tip her head back and the other hand pressed into the small of her back to mold her body more closely to his.  
  
Without conscious thought, he leaned forward until she was flat on her back and he stretched out on top of her, both hands in her hair as he took possession of her mouth. His firm lips slanted lazily across hers and he carefully traced the line where her lips met with the tip of his tongue. She moaned slightly in the back of her throat and shifted impatiently beneath him when the kiss deepened.  
  
He allowed himself to explore her mouth for a few moments more before pulling back.  
  
"Don't stop!" she protested breathlessly and he ground his teeth when his entire body objected too.  
  
"No, that's enough," he finally managed to say and shifted back to sit up against the arm while taking her hands to pull her up too.  
  
Her eyes were half-closed and languid, her lips swollen and flushed a deeper rose from his kisses. Another sharp thrill lanced through him when their eyes met and he had to clasp her by the shoulders to keep her from throwing herself at him.  
  
"Theadora!" he said with both frustration and impatience in his tone, "for God's sake, SOMEBODY has to protect your virtue and quite frankly that shouldn't have to be me!"  
  
She blinked once and stared at him blankly for a moment until the corners of her mouth lifted and she started laughing at the absurdity of what he had just said.  
  
"I'm sorry," she managed say through her laughter and he finally let himself relax.  
  
"Are you going to behave yourself now?" he asked and let go of her shoulders when she nodded. She settled back against him and let out one last chuckle as he wrapped his arms around her again.  
  
"Now I'm assuming me moving to a bedroom upstairs has something to do with you continuing to practice medicine," he said and had to pull his head back slightly when she nodded vigorously to avoid getting banged in the chin.  
  
"Oh yes!" she focused on the subject and he mentally sighed with relief. "What I want to do is close off that end of the downstairs and use the two bedrooms and the side entry for an office and an examining room. What do you think?"  
  
"I think that's a very good idea," he agreed and smiled at the current of excitement he could feel coursing through her muscles.  
  
"I'm glad, but I don't want you and Nate doing any of the work. All I ask is that you arrange for the work to be done, since I would have no idea whether or not I was getting my money's worth."  
  
"Done," he said succinctly and his smile widened when all she said in answer was a quiet, "Thank you."  
  
They sat there in silence for a while, both lost in their own thoughts until he heard her gasp.  
  
"Dear Lord, I forgot to ask how things went at Pinkerton's today!" She sounded appalled with herself and he laughed.  
  
"Things went very, very well. We had the grand tour, met a lot of people, and were added to the payroll."  
  
"Who did you meet?"  
  
"Well, we met Jerry...Culpepper I think his last name is, and the supervisor of the women agents, and the two agents we'll be sharing an office with."  
  
"What are they like?"  
  
"Hmmm...let me see...Mike is a little hostile at this point, but I think that's more about resisting change than any actual dislike. Now John is quite friendly and I have a suspicion that a very sharp mind is hiding behind his baby-face."  
  
Thea laughed softly. "What does Mike look like?"  
  
"Lots of curly dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a dark complexion. He's stocky and I can tell that there is absolutely no fat at all on the man. I think even I would hesitate before getting into a fight with him."  
  
"Then he's someone you would definitely want on your side."  
  
"Oh yes, but he's also the sort that won't give any loyalty easily."  
  
"I bet."  
  
"Now John is about average height and build, but looks like he's about sixteen."  
  
Thea laughed again. "If he's as sharp as you think he is I'm sure he uses that to his advantage."  
  
"Very perspicacious of you dear," he chuckled.  
  
"Showing off your vocabulary dear?" she teased and he tightened his arms around her.  
  
"Of course!" he laughed and she quickly pressed her ear to his chest to hear it rumble.  
  
"The highlight of the day for me was our tour of the central files," he continued and she nodded slightly as she listened.  
  
"They take a picture of every wanted person they bring in, and not only that, they have a full physical description and an assessment of their usual methods of committing crime. Each file holds every bit of information pertaining to that person, and every field agent sends in every story they come across."  
  
His enthusiasm made her smile, even as her heartbeat quickened with dread at the idea of her husband-to-be deliberately putting himself in danger by chasing criminals.  
  
"What fascinates me the most is the fact that they don't stop there. Pinkerton is just as much interested in the criminal mind as he is in the criminal act, and passes this information along to other law enforcement agencies. And a large part of what they do is teaching businesses how to prevent crime and protect themselves."  
  
"Would you be interested in doing that sort of thing too?"  
  
He smiled, knowing she was focusing on the less dangerous part of his new job as a way of easing her fears. "Of course I would because I agree with their philosophy that preventing crime is just as important as solving crime."  
  
"Good," was all she said in answer and sighed when he dropped a kiss on the top of her head.  
  
"Don't worry, I should think you would know by now that I'll never put myself in unnecessary danger."  
  
"I know," she agreed in a small voice and he gave her a small shake.  
  
"Thea, I know this will be hard for you, but just as much as you have to help people by being a doctor, I feel I have to help people by doing this. Do you remember? I believe we talked about this before."  
  
"We did...you said you want to make a difference in our part of the world, for me and for our children."  
  
"I'm glad you remember," he said low in her ear and gave her another small shake. "What do you think about going out to dinner tonight?"  
  
"Where?" she asked, hoping he wasn't thinking about going to the same restaurant where their evening out had turned into an embarrassing disaster.  
  
"No, not there," he laughed, reading her mind. "I know of a few other places we can go that are not that fancy and I'm sure they'll be able to find a table for two."  
  
"All right, but do you think we could..." she stopped speaking abruptly and sat up to give him an anxious look over her shoulder.  
  
"Think we could what?"  
  
"Well, it's not that I don't want to go out with you alone, but could we invite Nate? He's been so lonely since Glory left and I hardly ever see him anymore. I can't help but worry about him."  
  
His smile softened and his eyes lit up, pleased with her generous impulse. "Now why were you worried about asking me that? Of course we can invite Nate...in fact, you go get ready and I'll go next door to see if he's free."  
  
Thea smiled with relief and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before jumping up and dashing off.  
  
Adam shifted on the sofa to watch her race away and his smile widened when he heard her practically run up the stairs. Slowly getting to his feet, he sighed.  
  
"After all, friends ARE chosen family," he said softly to himself, and hurried toward the side door to go ask Nate to join them for dinner and to discuss the coming changes that would rearrange their lives in a totally new direction. 


	4. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 27 TO THE SWIFT

LOST – PART 2  
  
TO THE SWIFT  
  
Chapter 27  
  
Alexander Cartwright paused on the sidewalk in front of Thea's house in the shade of an oak tree to try and gather his wits together. He had been trying to come up with the right words for days, the words that would finally convince Theadora to marry him.  
  
Shaking his head at himself he felt that cold certainty well up in his heart again that he had waited too long. When he had quit his job as a bank clerk and gone west in search of gold more than a year ago he had been certain he would make his fortune quickly, and just as quickly return.  
  
The months had seemed to go by almost in a flash and when he received Thea's last letter full of details about her latest patient he had sold his claim and hurried back to New York. And now he was hesitating, wasting time because he wanted to know, but also didn't want to know. Just what had been going on in this house since he had left?  
  
Taking a deep breath, he smoothed down his thick, sandy-brown hair with both hands, straightened his shoulders, and turned to take the path around the side of the house. When he heard Thea's voice singing softly in the kitchen he couldn't help but smile as he stepped up onto the back porch and silently moved toward the back door.  
  
Thea was practically dancing around the kitchen, clearing the table and putting things away.  
  
"Excuse me Ma'am, but do you think you could spare a glass of water for a tired and dusty traveler?"  
  
With a gasp Thea swung around toward the door and her frown disappeared when she recognized him.  
  
"Alex! When did you get back?" She was smiling as she hurried to push the screen door open for him. Throwing caution to the winds, he pulled her into a tight embrace and felt encouraged when she returned the hug. But then she pulled back and when he looked down into her upturned face he saw a new expression in her eyes.  
  
"Oh Alex, I'm so happy to see you and I'm sure the boys on the baseball team will be too!" she laughed and shifted to take his arm. "But right now I want you to come with me and meet someone. I think I wrote to you about him...he's out in the smithy with Nate."  
  
Alexander's heart clenched painfully for a few seconds as she practically dragged him out the door and tugged him up the brick path. Thea continued to chatter away as they hurried toward the smithy, but he realized he really wasn't understanding a thing she was saying until he heard the word "engaged."  
  
"What?" he almost shouted, abruptly digging in his heels and forcing her to stop.  
  
"Alex, you haven't been listening to anything I've said, now have you?" she teased him and he could just barely hear her over the sound of metal striking metal.  
  
"You're engaged?"  
  
"Yes, and I know you must think this is rather sudden, but I've never been happier." She gave him her usual wide smile, but her eyes were solemn as they met his. "You've always been a wonderful friend to me Alex, and I know you'll be able to find it in your heart to be happy for me."  
  
The two stood on the path for a few moments, their gazes locked silently until Alexander reluctantly acknowledged to himself that this younger woman he had been pursuing for years was now irrevocably lost.  
  
Taking his hand, Thea tugged on it gently to pull him toward the smithy again and as he followed he managed to dredge up a small smile.  
  
Adam and Nate had their backs toward them and were bent over a rectangle of wrought iron on a high bench when Thea called out.  
  
"Nate! Look who's back in town!"  
  
Both men quickly straightened and whipped around, Adam's expression was carefully neutral, but Nate's was oddly secretive until he recognized the other man.  
  
"Alex! When did you get back?" he said and came forward as Adam moved slightly to block Thea's view of what they had been looking at.  
  
"Uh...just this morning..." Alex said, automatically reaching out to shake Nate's hand while staring intently at Adam until Thea tugged on his arm and quickly introduced them.  
  
"Alexander Cartwright, I'd like you to meet my fiancé, Adam Eden." The unrestrained pride in her voice was another blow to Alex's already bruised heart, so he didn't notice when Adam stumbled slightly and raised a hand to his forehead in mid stride.  
  
Nate and Thea rushed to him, badly startled by his suddenly pale face and the odd light that flared in his eyes.  
  
"Adam what's wrong? Are you in pain? Is your head hurting?" Thea asked anxiously, cupping his face in her hands while Nate slipped an arm around his shoulders.  
  
"No...I'm fine..." Adam answered slowly and shook his head as though trying to clear it.  
  
"Are you sure?" He smiled down at her and gently grasped her wrists to tug her hands away from his face.  
  
"Yes Doctor Westwood, I'm fine," he said firmly and reached around her to take Alex's hand in a strong grip. The other man winced slightly.  
  
"I'm pleased to meet you Alex," he said pleasantly as his now clear, dark eyes narrowed to take the other man's measure.  
  
"Likewise," Alexander managed to say and couldn't help but relieved when the other man finally let go.  
  
The four stood there awkwardly for a few moments – Thea continued to watch Adam anxiously, Nate tried to hold back his amusement at Alex's reaction, Alex desperately held on to his neutral expression, and Adam's eyes narrowed even more.  
  
"Well!" Nate finally said a little too loud, startling the other three and breaking the tension.  
  
"Why don't we all go on down to the house," he continued, "and Alex can tell us all about California?"  
  
"Good idea Nate," Thea said thankfully, glad that the awkward moment was over, and Adam nodded his agreement.  
  
"You and Alex can go ahead, Nate and I have a couple things to finish here," he said quietly and Thea gave him a grateful smile as she pulled his head down to give him a quick kiss. Then she sighed inaudibly before turning to take Alex's arm again.  
  
"Come on, you look like you could use a cup of coffee," she gently prodded him out the door, only looking back to give the other two men another quick smile.  
  
Nate waited as long as he could, one hand over his mouth, but eventually couldn't hold his laughter back.  
  
"Lordy, he got back here quicker than I thought he would!" he sputtered and Adam slanted a dark, sideways look at his friend as he went back to the bench.  
  
"Tell me about him."  
  
Making a huge effort to get himself under control Nate began to explain.  
  
"Alex and few of his friends put together a sporting team for the purpose of playing what we now call baseball some years ago and when Doc Adams joined the team he invited Thea to come and see a game. That's how she first met Alex."  
  
"I see..." The tone to Adam's voice was carefully non-committal. Nate's smile widened.  
  
"Um...what we used to play was kind of like rounders, but a lot of things have changed since then."  
  
"Go on..."  
  
"Well, Alex somehow got it in his head that Thea was coming to the games to see him and he's been after her ever since."  
  
"He's been pursuing her?" Adam's voice was bordering on anger and Nate hurried to reassure him.  
  
"Wait a minute, don't go thinking that Thea gave him any encouragement. She's kept him at arms length from the beginning and always treated him like a friend, but you know how stubborn some men can be."  
  
"I guess he never figured out that he's too old for her..." Adam was quickly putting his tools away a little more vigorously than usual. Nate's lips twitched at the slamming noises that kept getting louder.  
  
"No, I guess he didn't."  
  
"You said he got back here quicker than you thought he would, didn't you?"  
  
"Uh...yeah."  
  
"What made you think he was coming back, Nathan?" Adam saying his full first name in the softly ominous tone usually made Nate very nervous, so he was thankful his friend's annoyance wasn't directed at him this time. He tried to choose his next words carefully.  
  
"I know he's written to her and I'm sure she's answered his letters, that's just the way she is. And I also know that her letters to him have been full of you and nothing BUT you for some time now."  
  
Adam turned to stare at his friend as he put the last tool away and Nate hurried to answer his unspoken question.  
  
"I know these things because I know HER."  
  
"Hmmm..."  
  
"Believe me, there wasn't anything going on between those two before and there sure as hell isn't anything going on now."  
  
"Oh I believe you," Adam agreed quietly as he toweled the sweat off his chest and hands before buttoning his shirt and tucking it in. "Let's just hope that Alexander doesn't choose to do anything foolish." He clapped a hard hand on his friend's shoulder and pushed him toward the door.  
  
"I can promise you if he does he won't be very happy with himself."  
  
Neither man spoke on their way back to the house until they were close enough to hear TWO female voices talking and laughing in the kitchen. Then they both smiled, realizing that Olivia must have returned from her trip to Connecticut. Adam pulled the screen door open and waved his friend through  
  
"Well, it's about time!" Olivia laughed as she jumped up from where she was sitting next to Thea and hurried around the table to throw her arms around Nate first.  
  
"Sure is good to see you Liv," the tall blonde man chuckled as he returned the hug. "Did you have a good time?"  
  
"I'm surprised to say I did," she answered as she stepped back out of his embrace and reached for Adam. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and when he wrapped his arms around her to lift her off the floor she let out a startled laugh.  
  
"We're glad you're back," he whispered in her ear as he set her back down and they exchanged a knowing look before he let her go. He tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow to escort her back to the table where Nate had pulled a chair out for her.  
  
"Thank you," she gave the blonde man a dimpled smile and blushed lightly as she sat down. Thea's brows rose slightly as she stared at her friend so she didn't catch the quick, assessing look Adam was giving Alex, who was seated at the end of the table. She was still staring until he took his usual seat next to her and gave her a small nudge with his elbow.  
  
Nate's bright blue eyes swept around the group and he stepped in to break the awkward silence again.  
  
"Why are you surprised you had a good time Liv?" he asked the still blushing dark-haired woman sitting next to him and her expression went blank for a few seconds before she understood his question.  
  
"Well, most of the relatives we visited weren't exactly what you would call spring chickens, so I expected to be bored for most of the time. And I was for a little while until I met my great, great grandmother."  
  
"You mean you never met her before? How come?" Nate's tone reflected the surprise on everyone's face.  
  
"No, can you believe it? You see she had been living out west with two of her daughters and when they died within days of each other from the flu she was brought back to Connecticut to live with one of her granddaughters." Olivia shook her head. "I never even heard her name before." Her listeners nodded, understanding convoluted family relationships.  
  
"Strangely enough, I probably wouldn't have met her at all if I hadn't gone poking around Aunt Lucy's house," she smiled, slightly embarrassed to admit her rude behavior. "She's been bed-ridden for years so when I walked into her room at the top of the house I almost jumped out of my shoes when she spoke." Laughing, she shook her head at herself then continued with the story.  
  
"She is so tiny that she barely even made a small lump under the covers so I didn't notice her in the bed."  
  
"How old is she?" Thea asked, her eyes shining with amusement.  
  
"Let me see if I can remember how she told me," Olivia paused for a moment to think. "She said, 'Child I am older than dirt, but if you must know how many years they are ninety and five.'" They all had to laugh at the old woman's tart turn of phrase.  
  
"Oh I like that!" Thea said when the laughter died down, "and I wish I had a grandmother like that." Olivia reached across the table to pat her friend's hand.  
  
"Believe me Thea, she would take to you in a heart-beat and adopt you on the spot!" The two women exchanged smiles before Olivia continued. "Besides, don't you remember that friends are chosen family so my family is your family?"  
  
"That's true isn't it?" Thea's eyes filled, touched by her friend's generosity.  
  
"I know it's always been hard for you, not having any blood-relatives, but remember all the good friends you have." Thea brushed a small tear away with one hand and Olivia's smile turned into a teasing grin as she laughingly continued. "And don't forget that soon you will be a wife, and no doubt a mother before too long."  
  
Nate burst out laughing, Thea turned red, Adam smiled widely as he chuckled, and Alex had to swallow hard against the hard lump that rose in his throat before he could speak and change the subject.  
  
"So Nate," he managed to say and his voice was only slightly rough. "Have any more changes been made to the game rules since I left?"  
  
"Well, let me see..." Nate answered. "I think the last rules established before you left was the six-cent fine for swearing, right?"  
  
"Right," Alexander agreed almost laughingly and some color returned to his face.  
  
"Then there's been quite a few; the field is now diamond shaped, a base length of ninety feet has been set, foul lines have been marked, and soaking is now outlawed."  
  
"Good, I always thought that soaking the ball was cheating and no true gentleman would stoop to such a thing."  
  
"Doc Adams pushed the hardest for that, and I forgot to mention he's been playing the new position he proposed – short stop."  
  
"Oh yes, I remember him talking about that idea before I left." He shook his head and smiled slightly. "I take it that the resistance of the other players to that idea was pretty strong."  
  
"You better believe it!" Nate agreed with his usual good humor and the other man smiled a true smile in return until he noticed Thea sitting slightly sideways in her chair and leaning back against her fiancé. Adam had his arms around her and when Alex met his dark gaze he suddenly rose to his feet.  
  
"I'm sorry to take my leave so soon, but I really need to get back to my room and unpack," he said quickly and as he turned toward the front hall to make his escape he saw Adam tighten his hold on Thea to keep her from getting up.  
  
"Stay here," Adam whispered firmly in her ear, before he rose and moved around the table to clap a hard hand on the other man's shoulder.  
  
"I'll see you out," he said and the two moved out of sight down the front hallway.  
  
Nate's lips were twitching with amusement and Olivia took a deep breath to try and ward off a laugh at Thea's puzzled expression.  
  
"Now I wonder why he did that?" she asked her friends and Olivia could only shake her head, not trusting herself to answer the question out loud. Nate cleared his throat and tried to look serious.  
  
"I know you two aren't married yet, but he is technically man of the house now so it's only natural that he should see your guest out," he answered her question in what he hoped passed for a natural tone.  
  
"I guess that makes sense," Thea's eyes narrowed slightly with suspicion as she met Nate's seemingly somber gaze until Olivia finally trusted her voice to speak.  
  
"Have you found a wedding dress yet?" she broke in to ask and it was easy to see Thea instantly forget all about Alex.  
  
"I believe I have, but I still want your opinion before I finally decide," she answered as her face flushed a becoming pink with excitement. She hurried around the table to take the taller woman by the hand and pulled her to her feet. The two women took off down the back hallway and were clattering up the stairs when Adam returned to the kitchen.  
  
Nate watched him move slowly into the room and sit down at the end of the table, keeping his expression carefully neutral.  
  
"They went upstairs," he answered his friends unspoken question and the other man nodded.  
  
"I heard."  
  
"Oh..."  
  
The two men sat there in silence for a few moments until Nate just couldn't resist his curiosity.  
  
"So what did you say?"  
  
"What?" Adam's brose rows enquiringly. Nate sighed at his friend's deliberate obtuseness.  
  
"To Alex when you tossed him out."  
  
"I didn't throw him out, Nate. He is Thea's friend and therefore will always be welcome in our home."  
  
"Really?" Nate's voice rose in surprise.  
  
"Yes, of course." Adam shook his head and gave his friend a chiding look as the other man's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Did you tell HIM that?"  
  
"Of course I did, Nathan. I told him to feel free to come by anytime we are at home." Nate's lips started twitching again.  
  
"I see."  
  
"And of course I pointed out to him that any true gentleman would not risk tarnishing her reputation by visiting when no one else is here."  
  
"Ah...of course..." Nate almost sputtered, highly amused by Adam turning the man's own words against him. "So how is he supposed to know when you are home?"  
  
"I don't know, Nathan, and I believe that is Alex's problem, not mine." Nate started to shake with silent laughter that became audible when his friend smiled a sharp smile and his dark eyes sparked dangerously.  
  
"You realize you've in effect just about barred him from ever coming here again, don't you?"  
  
"Why Nathan! I do believe you might be right about that...but we will see."  
  
"WE will?" Nate was leaning against the table, weak with laughter.  
  
"Yes Nathan, WE will," Adam answered him firmly as he got to his feet, gave his friend a pointed look, and then started down the hall toward the sitting room.  
  
Nate's smile faded slightly as he watched the other man go, but in a moment it bloomed into full life again as he rose and bounded after his friend.  
  
"Hey! I'm a professional now...how much is this job gonna pay?"

Most baseball historians now agree that Alexander Cartwright was the real inventor of the game of baseball as we now know it, not Abner Doubleday. Alexander's team, the Knickerbockers, was based in Manhattan and another member of the team, namely Doctor Daniel Lucius Adams is credited with many of the later changes to the rules.


	5. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 28 GOOD DEEDS

LOST – PART 2 

**GOOD DEEDS**

Chapter 28 

The wedding was only a week away and the bride and groom were unexpectedly calm. The best man and the maid of honor, however, were turning into nervous wrecks.

Nate had his hands full with planning a surprise party for Adam while at the same time coping with the antics of the other three detectives. Mike, John, and Jerry seemed to be in competition to see could come up with the most idiotically outrageous ideas, not only for the all-male celebration before the wedding, but also for the open-house reception planned for after the ceremony.

Each suggestion was more outlandish than the last, and when Jerry proposed some sort of Arabian nightmare, complete with harem girls, camel races, and belly dancers, Nate's already paper-thin patience crumpled.

"That's it!" he shouted as his face flushed red and his expression tightened, "If you selfish buggers don't want to help with the wedding, that's fine, but I swear if I hear one more stupid idea you just MIGHT live to regret it!"

Nate's harsh, angry breathing was the only sound in the otherwise quiet office as the other three men stared at him in surprise for a few seconds before exchanging knowing, sideways looks. Then he couldn't keep himself from bursting out laughing when his friends suddenly fell to their knees and all at once began to plead for his forgiveness.

"Aw Nate, I swear we was just havin' some fun...didn't mean nobody no harm..." Jerry had his right hand over his heart and the left stretched out in a beseeching gesture.

John had his hands clasped together in front, his big blue eyes shining with earnest contrition. "I hope and pray that some day you will be able to find it in your heart to forgive me, Nate..."

"Nathan," Mike said in a deeply respectful tone, "I know I don't deserve any consideration from you, but I do humbly beg your pardon..." his curly head was bowed and his arms hung limply at his sides, his entire posture dramatically tragic.

The three continued babbling until Nate finally managed to take a deep breath and raised his voice again.

"All right, all right! I'll forgive you if you'll just knock it off; you're giving me one hell of a headache." He shook his head. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous you look?" he had finished saying when a deep voice spoke from the doorway.

"Am I interrupting something?" Adam asked, his eyebrows raised, his eyes sparkling with dark amusement and his hands on his hips.

Nate clapped a hand over his face and turned away while the others scrambled to their feet. Then John and Mike hurried to their desks and sat down, their faces bright red.

Left standing alone in the middle of the office, Jerry opened his mouth to explain, but Adam put up a hand to stop him.

"You know what? Don't answer that question – I'm not entirely sure I WANT to know..." he said as he swept his sharp gaze around the room, and then was gone, leaving just as silently as he had come.

"Oh God!" Jerry groaned, absolutely mortified, and that was enough to set his fellow detectives off. Their unrestrained laughter echoed down the hallway and found Adam as he started down the stairs. He smiled.

* * *

A fitful breeze was blowing that afternoon and Chester was stretched out on his belly in the shade, his big head resting on his front paws. He stretched and yawned, lazily rolling onto his side only to quickly sit up again at the sound of fast approaching footsteps. His mouth opened and his long pink tongue lolled out when Olivia turned onto the brick path leading to Thea's new home office.

Normally he would have hurried up to the young woman in welcome, but his ears pricked up, sensing her agitated state, and he stayed where he was. Only his shaggy head moved, watching her stalk by, go up the few steps to the side porch and go in, slamming the door shut behind her.

Thea was sitting at her desk to the left of the door, deeply engrossed in a patient's file when the loud BANG of the door closing startled her badly. She instinctively tried to stand up, but when her knees hit the underside of the desk the file she was holding flew up and out of her hands. Papers rained all over the room as she fell back, missed the chair that had rolled away, and hit the floor with a loud thud.

Olivia was still standing in front of the door with both hands over her mouth and her eyes wide, horrified by the other woman's dramatic reaction. She let her hands drop away as the last of the papers settled, but her expression didn't change as she watched Thea's hands appear, gripping the edge of the desk to pull herself up onto her knees.

"Livvy!" she said, now that she could see over the desk. "I take it you're upset about something?"

Surprised at her friend's calm sarcasm, Olivia blinked, her mouth closed with a snap and she desperately tried to swallow the mirth welling up in her throat. Then she heard Thea chuckle and she couldn't hold it in. Full-bodied peals of laughter shook her tall, slender frame and she stumbled across the room to collapse weakly into the visitor's chair next to the desk.

"Dear Lord, I'm sorry," she gasped, pulled the pins from her hat, and took it off to fan her red face with. "My dear, you just would not believe the day I've had!"

Thea leaned toward her friend, propped one elbow on the desktop and dropped her chin into that hand. "Goodness gracious, what happened?" she said, and Olivia had to laugh at Thea's elaborately wide-eyed, innocent expression.

"On second thought, I think you just might believe the day I've had," she tried to take a deep breath, but ended up coughing and covered her mouth with one hand while still fanning herself with the other. "Today was the Ladies' Aid Society meeting and I swear just about every salacious rumor possible is making the rounds about you two!"

"Salacious! Oh my...whatever shall I do?" Thea's eyes narrowed and she gave her friend a sharp smile. "What are the old hens clucking about now?"

"Everything from Adam being married and hiding from his wife until he can arrange a divorce, to you both founding a new utopian free-love society in the neighborhood!"

"You're joking!"

"I swear I'm not and you should have seen them, practically dancing in their chairs until the meeting was over so they could pounce on me," Olivia said, her expression plainly disgusted. "Every time I managed to get away from one, I'd be cornered by another! That's why I'm so late; it took almost an hour to run that gauntlet."

Thea's amused smile disappeared. "Oh I'm sorry Livvy that must have been such a trial to you."

"It's not your fault, I should have known better than to go. I did think of skipping this one and I should have followed my instincts." Thea nodded her agreement, but reached out to pat her friend's arm.

"I'm still sorry," Thea said quietly then grinned. "If I had any idea how we've been providing the neighborhood with entertainment I'd have planned to charge admission for the open house after the wedding." Olivia sat up and dropped her hat on the desk.

"Now THAT would give them something to chew on for at least the next six months!"

"No doubt..."

"And you can bet that when your first child arrives, every single one of them will be counting back nine months."

"I'm sure...and no doubt on their fingers," Thea's eyes sparked at that idea and her friend frowned, alarmed.

"Now don't you dare!"

"Don't I dare what?"

Olivia shook a finger at Thea, giving her as stern a look as she could manage. "You know!"

"Calm down it's too late for that, the wedding is only a week away, remember?"

"Oh God, how could I forget." Olivia took a deep breath and leaned back in her chair, obviously tired. Thea patted her arm again as she shook her head.

"I wish you would please let me help you with the open-house reception, it's too much for one person."

"But I wanted that to be my wedding gift to you!"

Thea laughed as she got to her feet, knowing she had finally broken down the other woman's resistance. "Olivia, can't you see that your friendship and support in spite of my notorious reputation is one of the finest gifts I've ever been given? Or ever will be given?" The other woman flushed with embarrassment, but her eyes showed how pleased she was with the unexpected praise.

Thea took her by the hand and began to tug on it, pulling Olivia to her feet. "Come on, let's go to the kitchen and have some cold lemonade. Then we can go over what tasks still need to be done and split them down the middle..."

* * *

Lustrous moonlight edged the riot of blooms in Thea's gardens with a pearlescent glow as Adam stood at the top of the back steps. He watched Nate and Olivia disappear through a gap in the back hedge and their distant, laughing voices seemed to hang in the warm, fragrant summer air.

Sighing deeply, he shifted to lean one shoulder against the porch roof support next to him, folded his arms across his chest, and let his head fall back to stare up at the thick blanket of stars. He briefly considered the possibility of his two friends ever becoming a couple then dismissed that thought. Nate was still in love with Glory and no doubt would be for a very long time.

The screen door behind him opened and closed quietly as Thea came out, and his serious expression lightened when her quick footsteps came up behind him. She pressed up against him, slipped her arms around his waist, and squeezed him tightly while rubbing her cheek on his hard back.

"Behave yourself, Theadora," he said low and smiled when she began to shake with nearly silent laughter. He waited for a few moments then tugged her clasped hands apart by the wrists, took one of her hands in his, and started down the steps, dragging her behind.

"Where are we going?" she managed to ask breathlessly, hurrying to keep up when he stopped abruptly on the gentle slope of a small rise and she bumped into him.

"Right here," he answered and dropped to the ground, pulling her down on top.

Thea squeaked in surprise then laughed when he rolled to the side and she found herself flat on her back on the thick, springy grass and staring up at the brilliantly diamond-studded swath of black velvet overhead.

"Oh my," she said softly, enchanted by the incredible beauty spread out above them. Adam chuckled.

"Now don't tell me you've never done any star gazing before..."

"Well...no...I can't say that I ever have," she admitted, still staring up at the stars, so she didn't see him quick frown.

"You really didn't have any kind of childhood at all, did you?" He carefully made the effort to keep his voice calm and even.

"I guess not...but then I wasn't exactly what you would call a typical child either."

The muscles in Adam's jaw bulged as he ground his teeth in frustration. "Stop defending him!"

"Defending who?" she said absently then her eyes widened even more when he sat up to lean over her.

"You know I'm talking about Doc." he shook his head. "That cold-hearted bastard who denied you everything, every single thing a child has a right to!"

"Adam!" she blurted out, shocked by the rage in his voice and his unusually harsh language. He took a deep breath and made an effort to calm down.

"I'm sorry, but I just can't stand the thought of you ever being at that man's mercy..." his voice trailed off and another piece of the puzzle as to why he was so furious clicked into place in her mind.

"Adam," she said softly this time, and reached to cup his face in her hands. "Terrible things happen in children's lives all the time, not just to adults, and I've always thought it's up to us, to each individual to make a choice." She tugged his head down until their lips almost met. "I chose a long time ago to try and leave those things behind..."

He kissed her softly and when she sighed with pleasure he pulled back to stroke her cheek with gentle fingertips.

"Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night in a panic," he said low, almost too low for her to hear, "terrified that I've only been dreaming and you aren't real." He buried his face in the crook of her neck and she felt the quick sting of tears behind her eyes at the thought of his pain. Then his lips touched her neck before brushing across her jaw to her mouth and she forgot everything when he kissed her completely without restraint for the first time.

She was only vaguely aware of being carried into the house and up the stairs until he set her down on her feet in front of her bedroom door. Thea's eyes finally opened when his nimble fingers began to unbutton the bodice of her dress and she shivered when his warm, hard hands caressed her shoulders and her arms, pushing the fabric away.

Her concentration was broken when he abandoned her mouth to trail hot, nipping kisses down her neck and she instinctively reached for his shirt buttons, only to gasp in surprise when he suddenly pulled her hands away by the wrist to pin them on either side of her head against the door.

"Oh, no you don't," he murmured in a dark silky voice and her knees started to buckle when he dipped his head to kiss the tip of each breast through the thin fabric of her chemise; he immediately pressed his hard length against her to keep her upright as he turned his attention back to her mouth again.

Completely overwhelmed by her nerves firing and miss-firing all over her body, her arms fell limply at her sides when he let go of her wrists to thrust both hands into her hair and tipped her head back. The urgent kiss deepened and she moaned softly, her entire consciousness focused on the hot mouth taking possession of her own, and then his hands slide down to cup her round bottom. He squeezed the firm flesh as he abandoned her lips and turned his head slightly sideways to breathe in her ear.

The delicious sensation of his firm lips on her ear weakened her knees again and she started to tremble all over until he laughed softly, whispered something, and was suddenly gone. She shivered in the absence of his enveloping body heat while his bedroom door opened and closed before his words finally reached her badly addled brain.

"GOODNIGHT?" she shouted slapping her palms back against her door and pushed off to stomp unsteadily down the hall to his. She reached for the doorknob just as the lock clicked and heard him chuckle when she gasped in outrage.

"Yes...goodnight Theadora," he said clearly just on the other side of the door, his dark silky voice making every nerve ending in her body leap in response. She kicked the door and he laughed at her surprised yelp of pain.

"Don't go breaking anything, love," that silken voice made her nerves thrill again. "I want you in perfect working order exactly one week from tonight..."

Shuddering, she thumped the door with her fist again. "Adam," she ground out through clenched teeth, her voice husky and tight with frustration, "you won't know how, or when, but I swear I WILL get you back for this..." Her vow was met with silence for a few seconds, and then the door creaked slightly as he leaned against it on the other side.

"Oh...I certainly hope so," he said and began to laugh when she slapped both palms on the door, let out an inarticulate shout of rage, and stalked the short distance down the hall to her room next door. Muttering under her breath, she slammed the door shut, practically ripped her dress off, threw herself across her bed and lay there on her back, fuming with impotent anger until she remembered the skeleton key.

She sat up abruptly, intending to bounce off the bed and rush downstairs to get it from her desk when a steady noise on the other side of the wall reached her ears. Listening intently, she realized he was pacing and she smiled with satisfaction before slowly laying back down. No doubt HE wouldn't be getting much in the way of sleep that night either.


	6. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 29 COLD HANDS, WA...

**LOST – PART 2 **

**COLD HANDS, WARM HEART**

**Chapter 29**

The sky had turned overcast late in the afternoon of the second Saturday in June and Olivia stood on the front porch of Thea's house watching Mike and John hurry down the front walk, carrying a small trunk between them. Breathing a deep sigh of relief, she turned and went back into the house, praying that the trunk would arrive at her Aunt's house unscathed.

She paused in the kitchen doorway to inspect the decorations and smiled, still surprised that Adam's detective friends had done such a good job in spite of all the laughter and fooling around she had heard from upstairs. Still smiling, she slowly moved through the kitchen and into the center hall where she paused again at the foot of the stairs, becoming aware of how quiet the house had become. A creeping sense of panic touched her spine and she was suddenly sure that Thea had given in to her pre-wedding jitters and bolted.

"Thea?" she called as she hurried up the stairs and headed toward the other woman's bedroom first. She glanced in quickly and started to turn away thinking the room was empty, but then realized she had seen the bed shake slightly.

"Thea, are you in here?" she asked as she moved around the end of the bed. Then she couldn't help but smile to see the woman in question face down on the floor and halfway under the bed.

"Are you looking for something?" She carefully sat on the edge of the bed.

"No Olivia, I just suddenly felt like playing with the dust bunnies," Thea's voice dripped with sarcasm. "God help me, I'm getting married in the morning and I can't find my white shoes!" She tried to wriggle further under the bed.

"Damn it, they're not here!"

"I know," Olivia managed to choke out, "you're wearing them." She held her breath then, waiting for the other woman's reaction.

"Are you sure?"

Olivia took in a badly needed deep breath and started laughing when Thea bent her legs to wave her feet in the air. "Absolutely sure."

"I didn't get them dirty, did I?"

"I don't think so," Olivia reached to take hold of the white satin slippers by the heel and pried them off. "No, they're not dirty but they do seem rather tight."

"I know, my feet felt swollen so I tried them on again, and then forgot when Mike and John came up here for the trunk." Olivia chuckled and set the shoes on the bed.

"Don't laugh Liv, I'm losing my mind!"

"No, you're not," Olivia nudged her prone friend with one foot. "Would you please get out from under there and stop hiding."

"I'm NOT hiding!"

"Yes you are, now come on out," she insisted then leaned over to swat the other woman on the backside lightly.

"Hey!" Thea scrambled backward, sat up and glared, her face flushed and curling tendrils of hair fell across her eyes. She pushed them back impatiently.

"I was NOT hiding!" she insisted, her eyes wide and shining more green than brown.

"All right, I give, you weren't hiding."

"Good! Besides, what possible reason would I have to hide," she paused to wipe her damp palms on her skirt. "I told Adam 'yes' and I'm going to marry him in the morning - that's all there is to it."

Olivia smiled, "Even if it kills you?"

"Yes…I mean no…" Thea's eyes narrowed. "Would you please stop putting words in my mouth, I already sound like a blithering idiot and I don't need any help from you!"

The two women stared at each other for a moment then both burst out laughing.

"Oh Thea," Olivia gasped, "sometimes I can't tell if you're absolutely brilliant or completely insane…"

"You know, I have a feeling Adam has had trouble making up his mind on that point too," Thea chuckled then her wide smile faded.

"Livvy, what if he doesn't like me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…I don't have any experience…what if I'm…no good?" Thea's gaze fell in embarrassment.

"Good Lord, I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Olivia tried to keep her voice firm and reassuring, hoping she was taking the right tack and knowing she was speaking the truth.

"You know as well as I do that you two practically give off sparks when you're together, and I am sure beyond a shadow of a doubt that Adam is experienced enough for the both of you." She stood and then bent down to take Thea's hands and pulled her to her feet.

"Besides," she continued, "after everything I've seen and what you've told me, I think you are going to give that poor man one hell of a run for his money!" Thea met her friend's gaze intently, wanting to believe.

"Now would you pull yourself together and stop acting like a lunatic so we can go and rescue my Aunt?"

"Oh you're right, I'm sorry." Thea turned away to open the wardrobe and grabbed a pair of walking shoes.

"Thank you," Olivia breathed as she moved toward the door and the other woman plopped down on the bed.

"Livvy? Just one more thing…" Thea called over her shoulder just as Olivia stepped through the door, so she turned back to stand in the opening.

"And that would be?"

Thea finished putting on her shoes, bounced off the bed, snatched up the elusive satin slippers, and practically skipped across the room to her friend.

"It's no act!" she chortled, took the taller woman's arm and started dragging her laughing friend down the hall.

"Come on woman, we have a poor, innocent old lady to save!"

* * *

By the time Adam returned that day, the sun was almost gone and the long shadows of twilight had melted together. He took the side path around to the back of the house and stopped for a moment to take in the dark, silent windows. Then he smiled, thinking about having someone to come home to from now on, and then he hurried inside.

He moved confidently through the dark to his room and dropped the bags he was carrying on the bed before lighting the lamp on his dresser. After shrugging out of his suit coat, he rolled his sleeves up and began to unpack the bags, getting everything ready for the wedding in the morning.

He was brushing the velvet lapels and collar of his new black suit when a faint creaking sound coming from the stairs made him stiffen and quickly cross the room to flatten himself against the wall next to the door.

"Be quiet, you idiots!" Jerry's harsh whisper came from the top of the stairs and Adam darted across the opening to hide behind the door.

A faint jumble of whispers was all he could hear then and he waited to see what they would do next. He didn't have long to wait.

His friends shuffled around in the hall briefly, jockeying for position then there was silence for a beat of three before they came rushing in yelling, "Surprise!"

John was the first to realize the room was empty and he abruptly stopped, but Jerry couldn't. He knocked the smaller man off his feet and onto the bed where he bounced once then disappeared over the far edge.

The door banging shut behind them startled the other two and they slid to a stop. Realizing what had happened, Nate turned back to the door and heard the key turn in the lock just as his hand touched the knob.

By this time Jerry had collapsed on the bed, breathless with laughter while Mike was helping a still dazed John to his feet. Nate kicked the door.

"Adam, let us out!" he demanded then kicked the door again when all he heard from the other side was deep laughter.

"Come on, if we don't leave now we'll be late," Nate glanced over his shoulder to see his three friends sitting on the bed and grinning gleefully at this unexpected turn of events.

"Late for what?" Adam's voice, dark with amusement, could easily be heard by the three-man audience.

"Don't play dumb, you're no good at it," Nate answered dryly. "You know we've been planning a send off for you tonight."

"Where?"

"What?"

"Tell me where and I just MIGHT let you out." Nate glanced back at his friends again before answering.

"The Motte and Bailey."

"A sporting house? You know what I think of those places."

"Adam, I swear on my honor as a Pink that this is just a celebration which will be conducted with all due deference and dignity in light of your coming nuptials."

"Did you swallow a dictionary?"

"What?...No, I've just been spending too much time with John lately." Nate heaved a deep sigh then had to hastily back up when he heard the lock click and the door immediately swung open. Adam stepped in, grinning.

"Why are you all wearing black armbands?" was all he had a chance to say before Mike, Nate and Jerry rushed him and began to drag him down the dark hallway.

Shaking his head, John got to his feet, collected Adam's suit coat, carefully put the lamp out, and then followed.

Less than an hour later, the five men arrived at the huge brownstone castle-like building. All the windows on the first two floors were brightly lit and the noise from all the celebrations going on inside spilled out into the street.

"Why do I have a feeling this is NOT a good idea?" Adam protested as they herded him into the building. Then he burst out laughing when he saw the room.

Tall black vases filled with white, waxy lilies were placed strategically around the room and black crepe festooned most of the fixtures. A bier draped with black cloth supported a crude, makeshift coffin.

Five women dressed in brightly colored silks trimmed with black lace were seated in a row in front of the bier and they stood, turning to look when they heard Adam's deep laughter.

"Now this is just morbid," he sputtered as he continued to survey the room until his eyes fastened on a baby grand piano in the opposite corner. He stopped laughing and started toward it, but his friends hurried to drag him back.

"No you don't, you're not allowed to play with that yet," Jerry informed him as they picked him up and carefully deposited him in the crude coffin. The entire bier began to shake as Adam lay there laughing helplessly.

The ladies had already taken their seats again as John moved to stand behind a mahogany podium to the right of the bier, and the other men hurried to the three chairs in the second row. The youngest of the detectives cleared his throat and his blue eyes sparkled as his expression became deeply sorrowful and solemn.

"My friends, we are gathered here tonight to bid a fond farewell to our dear, nearly departed – a bachelor known far and wide as Adam Eden." Some of the congregation murmured agreement and some nodded, everyone having assumed suitably serious expressions.

"Oh, you people are just sick," Adam gasped and tried to hold his mirth in when John came out from behind the podium to say, "No comments from you, mister, you're supposed to be departing!"

"Sorry old man," the guest of honor managed to say, but kept laughing, although silently.

John hooked his thumbs in the shallow pockets of his waistcoat and began to pace slowly, up and down, in front of the coffin.

"Our dear friend has proven himself to be a man of many talents, the light of which has shone brightly on us, his friends and lesser beings. He is a man of many, many talents I can assure you, a bushel full, to be exact if you will pardon the allusion."

Muffled laughter swept through the congregation as well as faintly voiced comments.

"Oh my..."

"How subtle of you Johnnie..."

The young man stopped his pacing to rake his bright blue gaze over those seated and they quickly settled down.

"Yes!" he continued in a surprisingly compelling voice, "We are here to comfort one another and to send our heartfelt prayers with our dear friend as he bravely sets sail on the storm-tossed sea of matrimony!" He paused to severely survey his audience again. "Unfortunately, not being men of wealth, we can only afford to send him off in a well-used dinghy..."

"Oh God!" Jerry choked out and almost fell out of his chair while the rest burst out laughing. The bier began to shake dangerously.

"Brothers and sisters!' the baby-faced orator thundered, "give me an 'amen' please!"

"AMEN!" the congregants practically shouted as a small crowd of patrons from the barroom gathered in the open archway, adding more laughter to the already noisy room.

"AMEN!' John repeated and stopped his pacing to stand almost sideways with one hand on the edge of the coffin. The bier began to shake even harder.

"Adam Eden...our fearless leader...our nearly departed bachelor friend, "he intoned solemnly, "I know I speak for everyone here when I assure you that none other will take your place in our hearts." Everyone was nodding as he continued, "Unless, of course, the powers that be should assign someone else to share our office."

Laughter and groans rose up from the crowd and Adam couldn't take it anymore. He burst out laughing and that precipitated the end of the service as the badly shaken bier finally collapsed with a billow of black cloth.

Caught off-balance John couldn't straighten up and with a startled yell, fell face-down on top of the dear, nearly departed. The room erupted in chaos as the two men were quickly buried under a huge and drifting pile of white wax flowers.


	7. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 30 THE NIGHT BEFO...

LOST – PART 2 

**THE NIGHT BEFORE**

Chapter 30 

Thea nervously glanced over her shoulder as she hurried quietly down the back stairs in Olivia's aunt's house, feeling desperate with the need to be alone. The back door squeaked gently when she pushed it open and she heaved a sigh of relief as she stepped out onto the porch.

Taking another deep breath, she moved silently down the few steps to the back yard and just stood there for a while, breathing in the earthy, fecund scents of the well-tended flower garden. She wiggled her bare toes in the lush grass and closed her eyes, standing still in the moonlight until her frayed nerves began to settle.

The evening had started out well enough. The two young women had gone about carefully tending to the many tasks necessary in preparing for the wedding without any mishaps. But then Olivia's elderly aunt Tilly came home and everything began to fall apart...

Ignoring the fact that Thea was a physician, the tiny, gray-haired maiden lady had insisted on trying to give her the traditional "night before the wedding" talk, feeling that the younger woman's lack of female relatives made it necessary. By the time she was finished, Thea was desperately trying to hold on to her composure, choking back hysterical laughter, while the elderly woman became almost overcome with embarrassment.

Tilly's further efforts to help made matters even worse when the cucumber facial mask she made dried almost rock hard on Thea's face. No amount of water would soften the thing and Olivia had to resort to prying it off with a dull butter knife.

Undaunted, the older woman had then tried to correct THAT mistake with the application of rose water and glycerin, forgetting how badly the mixture would sting when it came in contact with abraded skin.

With a loud squawk, Thea had hastily pulled her still slightly swollen feet out of the washtub full of cold water, fallen to her knees, and plunged her whole head in. She didn't come up again until she was gasping for air.

Deeply embarrassed and almost hysterical herself, Olivia managed to convince her aunt to go down to the kitchen to make a posset for the now dazed bride-to-be and managed to hold back her laughter until the elderly woman was out of earshot.

Looking like a drowned and abused rat, Thea's hostile eyes had stared at her convulsing friend through soaked tendrils of wet hair plastered to her face.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry Thea..." Olivia had sputtered and tried her best to get a hold of herself before staggering weakly out into the hallway to fetch more towels from the linen closet.

By the time her aunt had returned with the requested drink Olivia had regained her composure and the other young woman had almost recovered from nearly drowning. Smiling her thanks, Thea took the proffered cup and hastily drank the thick posset down, knowing that the older woman would immediately take the dish back down to the kitchen to be washed.

Once Tilly was gone and Olivia had taken the wet towels down the hall to the bath to be hung up to dry Thea had bolted...

A sweet breeze ruffled the leaves of the regal oak trees surrounding the back yard and tugged gently at her voluminous white nightgown, urging her to open her eyes. Misty beams pouring down from the waxing moon danced with the shadow leaves and her heart lifted while filling with a yearning to play. Gleefully giving in to the impulse, she rose up on her toes and began to sway and pirouette to an inner tune until finally collapsing breathlessly on a bench under an arbor of climbing roses.

The laughter at her own child-like behavior rising in her throat solidified and she jumped to her feet, badly startled by the sound of applause coming from the other side of a hedge directly in front of her. Poised to run, she raised her now hard stare to the face of the person peering over the boxwood then relaxed when she recognized him.

"Alexander Cartwright!" she spoke in a harsh, carrying whisper. "What in the world do you think you're doing?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he answered as he moved down to the small gate and let himself in.

Having regained a good deal of her composure, Thea shook her head at him.

"Do you have a secret life as a Peeping Tom? I never would have suspected," she said teasingly, but her tone still held a faint edge of irritation. Something oddly familiar in the way he was speaking and moving had an alarm bell to faintly begin ringing in the back of her mind.

"No, I'm not a Peeping Tom," he moved closer and she stopped herself from taking an instinctual step back. "But when a man happens to stumble across capering wood nymph he'd be insane not to stay and enjoy the show." The alarm bell began to ring louder and she tensed again.

"Capering wood nymph?" she blurted out, thrown off-balance by his comment then rolled her eyes at herself for how foolish that sounded.

"Yes, the embodiment of every man's dream," he said and stopped to stand in front of her and she frowned at the strong, sour smell of brandy on his breath.

"Alex...you've been drinking...and quite heavily, I think."

"How observant of you," he said, his white teeth flashing in the dark as he smiled. "I'm surprised you noticed, though. Ever since you met Adam you haven't been able to see anything or anyone else." His voice dripped with self-pity and he startled her again by quickly stepping to the side and dropping down to sit on the bench. He waited for her response and when he realized none would be coming he began to laugh bitterly.

"My apologies, I forgot. Adam as a subject is sacred and no one dare say anything unflattering." Thea's eyes opened wide and sparkled dangerously in the moonlight.

"Alex, what do you want?" she spoke through clenched teeth and he laughed again.

"I don't know..."

"You don't know?"

"No, not really," he sighed. "I mean, I know nothing I can say will stop you from marrying that man in the morning. I've been heartlessly tossed aside..." he abruptly stopped speaking when she made an impatient sound in the back of her throat and her temper sparked.

"Stop it Alex. You know as well as I do that we've never been anything more than friends."

"Really? Then why did you keep accepting my invitations."

"Invitations?" she shook her head vigorously. "You mean you thought we were courting because I went to ball games?"

"Well...yes."

"Alex, if you think that's courting you have a lot to learn." She sighed, suddenly weary. "I went to those games to see Nate play too."

"You did?" he honestly sounded surprised.

"Yes Alex, I did," she answered softly then started to turn away. "It's very late and I should go in..." she was saying but stopped, shocked when she realized he was crying.

"Oh God...oh God," his large frame shook as he pressed both hands to his mouth, trying to muffle his own sobs and all she could do was stand there helplessly and watch him lurch unsteadily to his feet and stumble away.

A lump rose in her throat and she swallowed hard against it before turning to run back to the house. Quietly making her way back upstairs she went to the guest bedroom and was glad to see Olivia curled up in an armchair in the corner.

Her friend put down the book she had been reading and smiled up at Thea until she read the other woman's expression.

"Thea...what happened?" she said too loudly in surprise and they could both hear Tilly's light footsteps pattering down the hall in their direction.

"Dear Lord," Thea gasped as the lump in her stomach rose to meet the one in her throat. She rushed across the room toward the chamber pot and just made it before throwing up.

Shaking her head in wonder, Olivia turned her head toward her aunt who was now standing in the doorway, her little mouth open wide in an "O" of surprise at the horrific retching sounds Thea was making.

"Aunt Tilly...did you happen to use wine in that posset?"

* * *

Almost an hour after his premature burial the dear, nearly departed Adam was finally seated at the coveted baby grand piano, having a fine time playing and watching the dancing couples swirl by. The brightly lit room was full of motion and color as people joined the party, attracted by the lively music, happy chatter, and free-flowing beer.

When the song ended, the applause and swell of voices drowned out the sound of Nate's approach so Adam wasn't aware of the other man's presence until a handcuff seemed to just suddenly appear on his right wrist. He looked up into his friend's grinning face in surprise before noticing that the other cuff encircled the slim wrist of a dark-haired sylph dressed in red silk trimmed in black lace. His eyebrows shot up alarmingly.

"Miss Scarlet, meet Adam – Adam, meet Miss Scarlet," Nate sputtered and the young lady in question flushed a becoming pink and gave him a puckish smile. Nate spoke again before the other man had a chance to react.

"Now this brave young lady has graciously agreed to be your companion for the rest of the evening, and that means for dancing and scintillating conversation only." Adam couldn't help but to start laughing as he rose to his feet.

"Well, Miss Scarlet," he said, his dark eyes sparkling with sardonic humor as he took her left hand and bowed at the waist over it, "May I have the next dance then?"

"I thought you'd never ask!" she answered in a warm, cultured voice and when he straightened up to give her his most charming smile her cheeks blushed a deeper pink as her breath caught in her throat.

Then she jumped, badly startled when he shouted "John!" before turning his head to scan the room.

"Comin' Boss!" the youngest of the detectives quickly made his way through the crowd and came running, towing a petitely curvaceous girl by the hand. Her glossy, shoulder-length chestnut curls bounced, her kittenish face glowed with the promise of mischief, and her hazel eyes reflected the deep green color of her silk dress.

"Take over here son, Miss Scarlet wants to dance!" He stepped over the bench and gathered his captive dance partner into his arms as John hurriedly sat down and immediately began playing a lively Polka.

By the time the third dance ended Adam could see that his companion for the evening was wilting, her peaches-and-cream complexion dewy with moisture. He grinned when she began to flutter her black lace fan vigorously until he leaned down to speak low in her ear.

"Well Miss Scarlet, I believe we could both use a breath of fresh air," he took her left hand in his right and the cuffs clinked softly together. "Would you care to take a stroll in the garden?"

"Yes, please, if it wouldn't be too much trouble," she answered and began laughing breathlessly, scrambling to keep up as he started shouldering his way through the lively crowd.

She smiled and relaxed when they finally stepped out the back door, moved across the porch, and down the steps onto a circular gravel path. A soft summer breeze lifted the damp tendrils of soft hair framing her face and she took in a deep breath of the warm, sweetly-scented night air.

"Better?" Adam asked quietly as they slowly walked on and he sensed rather than saw her nodding her head in agreement.

The path curved to the right and when they were out of sight of the house he gently tugged on her hand to lead her off the path toward a rose-covered arched trellis with a wide bench on each side. He motioned with his free hand for her to be seated first and she scooted over when she realized he would have to sit on her left because of the handcuffs.

After taking his place next to her he reached into an inner pocket of his suit coat and took out a long leather case, opened it, and carefully placed it on the seat between them. Then he took her left hand in his right again and lifted them both until a piece of moonlight filtering through the trellis shone directly down on the cold steel.

"I didn't pay close enough attention when Nate snapped these on," he said by way of explanation as he plucked an oddly shaped key from the case. In a few seconds their linked wrists were freed.

"I have to apologize for my friend," he continued, his voice tinged with exasperation. "He's a good man, but has an…odd sense of humor."

"Please…there's no need to apologize. I know Nate and he meant no harm," she answered and saw his white teeth flash in a wide smile. She watched his dark silhouette relax as he leaned back, folded his arms across his chest, and stretched out his long legs before crossing them at the ankle.

"I'm glad you feel that way, but his enthusiasm for jokes is going to get him into deep trouble some day."

Shaking her head at Nate's boyishly outrageous behavior she suddenly tensed, realizing that she felt perfectly safe being alone with this man, something she rarely experienced since she had left home. Her job had taught her the hard way to be alert at all times and to trust no one outside her close knit circle friends.

"Is something wrong?" Adam's deep, smooth voice broke through her musings.

"No…nothing's wrong," she said quickly, glad that he couldn't have seen her expression.

"So tell me, now that we're acquainted, what is your real name?"

"Elizabeth Guthrie," she automatically answered and bit her tongue when she snapped her mouth shut, hoping to keep it that way. Desperately searching her mind for something to say to distract him, she didn't really hear what he had said next, but was aware he had asked a question.

"I'm sorry, I must have been wool gathering," she apologized in what she hoped was a natural tone. "Did you ask me something?" She couldn't see his eyes, but could swear she felt his intense gaze.

"Yes I did…I asked if anyone ever called you Liz."

Completely off balance now, she gave up trying to think clearly when she found herself blurting out, "Not anymore…not for a very long time." They both fell silent for a few moments until Adam took a deep breath.

"Trouble at home?"

"Yes."

"Is it anything I can help you with?"

"No, it's far too late for that."

"I see…"

"But thank you for offering."

"You're welcome, and if there ever IS anything I can help you with, promise that you won't hesitate to ask."

His voice was firm, plainly stating he would not accept any objections and her throat suddenly felt tight.

"I promise," she tried to speak normally, but the words came out in a half whisper.

"Good," was all he had to say in answer and a brief, but comfortable silence fell between them this time.

"Tell me about your fiancé…what is she like?"

"What is Theadora like?" he echoed her question and she saw his white teeth flash again in a wide smile until he slowly shook his head.

"That's easier said than done, Ma'am, and I only have about twelve hours to get to the wedding on time."

"All right, I'll make it easier for you…what does she look like?"

"Well that's easy, she looks like a pixie," he chuckled softly and she heard a world of meaning in that simple sound.

"So you're telling me that your fiancé looks like a mischievous fairy?"

"Yes Ma'am, I am." She watched his shadowed form sit up and lean forward to rest his elbows on his thighs and let his long-fingered hands dangle in between his knees.

"I've heard a rumor that she is a physician – is it true?"

"Yes Ma'am, it is." He nodded his dark head vigorously.

"And tomorrow morning this mischievous fairy physician will also become your wife?"

"I certainly am counting on it, Ma'am!" His shoulders started to shake with nearly silent laughter and she smiled, pleased to be having an intelligent exchange of words with a man for a change. Usually her evenings were spent feigning wide-eyed interest while actually being bored to tears.

"Was it love at first sight?"

"Oh no, Ma'am, I was too busy dying for that to happen."

"Dying!"

"Yes Ma'am, we first met in the hospital morgue and I died just a few minutes later."

"Good God Adam, are you serious?" Completely incredulous, she sat up then leaned forward to try and see his expression.

"Absolutely Ma'am, they thought I was already dead and Thea was supposed to do my post-mortem." He turned his head and she saw him smile a smile she hadn't seen before. "But that little five-foot-two mischievous fairy physician decided I wasn't going to stay that way."

"Oh my…how incredible…and how romantic!"

"I never thought of it that way," he lifted one hand to smooth down his dark, closely clipped beard. "All I know for sure is that she fought death and won. Thea considers death to be her enemy and takes it personally when she loses a patient."

"I wish I could meet her," Liz said without thinking then hastily added, "but I know that's not possible."

"Why not?" he asked reasonably and she blinked in surprise before answering.

"Now Adam, any respectable woman would have a fit if someone like me came into her home." He chuckled at her admonishing tone.

"Theadora isn't like that and in fact, I would bet you two would be good friends."

"Really? You're not just sending me up?"

"I swear by all that is holy I am telling you the truth." Shaking his head at her disbelief, he stood and turned to hold a hand out to help her up.

"In fact, I am so sure I want you to come to our open house tomorrow afternoon," he tucked her hand in the crook of his arm and started leading her back to the gravel path.

"I'm sure you must be right, but I'm NOT sure I could do something like that."

They were nearing the back porch of the stone house and several couples were walking around, so he bent his head down to whisper in her ear. "I certainly hope you will come to see us Lady Lizbeth," he paused to glance around. "But do you, me, and Nate a favor and don't mention the handcuffs."

Abruptly struck by a vision of the mayhem that would result from such a serious faux pas on her part, Liz burst out into unrestrained laughter, shakily made it up the porch steps with Adam's help, and they both staggered inside.


	8. LOST PART 2 CHAPTER 31 THE MADDING CR...

**LOST – PART 2**

**THE MADDING CROWD**

**Chapter 31**

Midnight was fast approaching, but the celebration hadn't wound down at all. John was still at the piano, having volunteered to keep playing so Adam would be free to enjoy himself...and so he did, dancing with each one of the "girls" in turn.

First he waltzed with Amber whose willowy form, angelic face, and halo of white-blond hair belied her prodigious stamina and nimble feet. Three energetic dances later and after receiving a deeply passionate farewell kiss, he moved on to Violet, a sweet-faced waif who seemed to almost float in his arms through each dance.

When the third ended, he couldn't resist the teasing sparkle in her bright eyes, so he gently kissed each deeply-dimpled cheek and then her forehead as he smoothed back tumbled waves of glossy dark hair.

His next dance partner was a tall, regal, sandy-haired beauty who archly told him her name was Sapphire. He smiled, amused at the game the ladies were playing by taking their names from whatever brightly colored silk they wore.

The two suited each other so well in the dance that everyone else stopped to watch them gracefully circle the room. Enthusiastic applause burst out as they swirled to a stop at the end of their last waltz, and then finished with an elaborate bow and curtsy.

Jade, the chestnut-curled kitten in green was still sitting next to John when Adam went to collect her. The diminutive woman grinned, giggled, and chattered in turn as they danced and he couldn't help but smile widely, charmed by her sweetness. Her quicksilver laughter made everyone join in when Adam picked her up halfway through their last dance and kept going, swinging her around with her feet dangling more than a foot off the floor.

Liz was keeping the baby-faced detective company and the two were sitting on the piano bench, their heads close together, with John doing all the talking. They turned to look when Adam approached with Jade on his arm and the younger man quickly rose.

"Thank you very much son," Adam said as he took Jade's hand and placed it in John's. "Now you kids go have some fun..." Grinning, the two practically skipped away.

Adam took John's place on the bench then exchanged an amused look with Liz as the younger couple disappeared through the back door. The room had become reasonably quiet and he suddenly felt reluctant to stir things up again by playing another dance tune.

"Well Miss Scarlet, do you happen to know the words to 'Summer Rain'?" he asked while playing a few notes softly.

"Doesn't everyone?" she laughed in answer and he grinned wickedly.

"Good, then I'll play while you sing..."

"Oh no Adam, I couldn't!"

"Of course you can," he persisted and started playing the bittersweet tune, a song of lost love and the heartache of being left behind.

Not wanting to disappoint her new friend, Liz closed her eyes, opened her mouth and began to sing. Her smooth contralto voice gained strength with every line and by the time the song was almost finished she had forgotten her fear and truly felt the words.

_**I close my eyes  
**__**For the very last time  
**__**And there we are again...  
**__**In the meadow,  
**__**Picking flowers,  
**__**In the sweet-soft summer rain.**_

The last notes wafted through the now silent room and the sudden crash of applause startled her badly. She clapped her hands over her now red face, but Adam gently pulled them away by the wrist saying," Come now, stand up and take a bow..."

Laughing breathlessly, she started to stand, but then fell back with a gasp of surprise when a double-line of men dressed in dark blue clothing broke through the crowd by pushing and shoving. Several people stumbled and some fell, but they were quickly helped back up as a buzz of angry voices rose.

The largest of the intruders swaggered across the open space, sweeping the sides of his coat back to reveal an ornate and amazingly shiny gold badge pinned to his vest. He stood there rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, surveying the crowd with hard dark-blue eyes.

"Quiet!" he roared and raised one hand to smooth down his sandy walrus-like mustache. The buzz faded away, but the resentful expressions all around him deepened.

"All right now folks, settle down," he barked. "This little shindig is over and I'm ordering you all to disperse quietly and in an orderly fashion. Anyone not cooperating will be placed under arrest."

The angry buzz sprang up again following his last words and he opened his mouth to go on when an outraged bellow came from the double doorway.

"Declan Aloysius MacKenna!" A tall woman with blue-black hair like a raven's wing, a generous, graceful figure and startlingly clear eyes plowed through the crowd to stand in front of him.

"What the hell do you and your bucket-headed brigade think you're doing?" She took a step closer, her hands fisted on her hips as her entire body shook with righteous outrage.

"This is MY establishment and I say when the party is, or isn't, over!"

"Don't be pushing into this Rhona, I've got orders from higher up," he protested, his expression an odd mixture of irritation, stubbornness, and regret.

"Higher up my foot! That odious little toad Irwin went running to daddy because he got what he deserved for a change - roughed up and thrown out for crashing this party and insulting the ladies."

"Rhona please...if it were up to me..."

"Ha! If it were up to you, you'd be licking the chief's behind as well as his boots!" A dull red stain spread from his neck to his face.

"All right, that's enough out of you," he said, the muscles in his heavy jaw twitching as he reached to take her by the upper arm.

"Don't touch me, you ham-fisted oaf!" she spat, jerking her arm out of his grasp as she started to back away. One of her heels came down on the foot of the policeman behind her and he shoved her away too hard, knocking her to the floor. She fell with a startled yelp and all hell broke loose as her "girls" came running to protect her...by attacking the wrong man.

Amber practically leapt at Declan, throwing her whole body into a punch that rocked him back on his heels. The diminutive Jade threw herself to her knees and sank her teeth into his calf. Letting out a huge bellow, he tried to shake her off until Sapphire wrapped one long arm his neck from behind and began to squeeze. He went down hard under a flurry of brightly colored silk as Violet finally made it through the milling crowd to leap on top of the pile. She searched with both hands until finally locating his head and began to yank enthusiastically on his hair.

A half-empty beer mug sailed across the room and smashed against the wall, just missing Adam's head, and broke the shocked paralysis that had kept them sitting on the piano bench staring in disbelief.

The next thing Liz knew, she was under the piano, crouched on the floor and in Adam's protective embrace. Her eyes widened in alarm when a tight knot of five struggling men staggered into and onto the piano bench, smashing it completely. She buried her face in his shoulder as a hail of wood pieces bounced off Adam's back and the floor around them.

"Liz," he said low, his lips so close to her ear that his warm breath made her shiver.

"Liz," he repeated then leaned back. The corners of his mouth lifted as his dark gaze met her vague stare.

"All right Miss Scarlet, I need you to pay attention now," he insisted. She blinked a few times and then nodded.

"Good girl," he glanced back over his shoulder just as a man who looked suspiciously like Mike was thrown through one of the tall front windows. The riot spilled out into the street as more policemen came pouring through the door.

"Things are going from bad to worse out there," he said as he cupped her chin in one strong, long fingered hand.

"I want you to stay under here and get as far back in that corner as you can...and no matter what you see or hear DO NOT come out until everyone has gone."

Liz opened her mouth to protest, stopped, then closed her mouth and nodded again.

"Promise me, young lady."

"I promise," she answered quietly and they smiled at each other until Liz glanced across the room and spotted John with his back against the wall doing his best to defend himself against a much taller and bigger man.

"Oh Adam," she gasped, "John needs you..."

He turned to look and she could feel his entire body stiffen with rage. Then he turned back so quickly she wasn't prepared for his kiss, and all she could do was raise one hand to touch her tingling lips with her fingertips as she watched him roll away and jump to his feet.

She crawled a little closer to the edge and saw him run full tilt across the room, put his head down and ram right into John's attacker, sending the man flying. Both men disappeared into the still churning mass of people as John slid down the wall and just sat there with his head hanging.

Regretting her promise, Liz tamped down the urge to go to his aid and retreated to the corner. Sighing, she drew her knees up, wrapped her arms around them, and let her head fall back against the wall.

She closed her eyes and settled in to wait.

* * *

The moon had already set and the house was quiet when Thea turned over in bed for what seemed like the hundredth time, and she sighed with weariness. Throwing the covers back, she slid from the bed and walked over to the dressing table on silent bare feet, picked something up, and came back to sit in the chair next to the bed.

A match flared with a thin trail of smoke and the light from the small lamp she lit on the bedside table painted everything in reach with a dull, amber glow.

She blew out the match, carefully placed it in the ceramic dish next to the lamp then leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees, her hands folded around her favorite piece of jewelry, an oval-shaped locket she had taken from the dressing table.

The cool metal soon warmed from the touch of her skin and when she exposed it to the light the gold gleamed, illuminating the green enameled stem and white mother-of-pearl blossoms of the lily-of-the-valley set in its center.

Her fingers fumbled slightly as she pried it open, something she had not done for a very long time, and her eyes narrowed, staring intently at the miniature portrait then revealed.

Cool, leaf-green eyes framed by thick golden lashes almost seemed to be staring back at her, and the thin deep rose-colored lips looked as though they might part and speak at any second. Arrogance was apparent from the set of the man's jaw while the long, narrow nose with pinched nostrils bespoke a chronic ill temper. A riot of short golden curls belied the stone-hard face of the man portrayed and the quick sheen of retrained tears glistened in her eyes for a brief moment then were blinked away.

Carefully prying with her fingernails at the gold rim holding the ivory oval in place, she managed to unfasten its catch and fold it back on its own hinge.

Turning the locket over she tried to shake the miniature portrait loose, but it refused to budge and she had to resort to prying at it. As a result, the thin wafer of ivory broke in half.

She stared down at the two pieces lying on her palm and was surprised to realize the only regret she felt was for destroying the work of a talented artist. Dropping the pieces into the ceramic dish on top of the burnt match, she slowly snapped the locket back together then returned it to the dressing table.

The grandfather clock in the downstairs hall deeply tolled the time as half-past-two and she carefully put out the lamp before climbing back into bed. She fell asleep feeling as though a familiar but unwelcome weight had tumbled off her heart...and she smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

**LOST – PART II**

**PRELUDE**

**Chapter 32**

A few hours before sunrise, one lone man in blue quietly opened the back door to the private hall and stepped in. He slowly made his way to the center of the room, carefully stepping over and around the debris left by the free-for-all that had ended Adam's send-off celebration so badly.

The man's pleasantly handsome face lit with sardonic humor as he raked both hands through his sandy hair.

"From the looks of this, you'd think everyone had a good time," he chuckled under his breath then turned back to leave, but stopped short and frowned when he heard a faint rustling. Quickly turning just his head to look in the direction he thought the sound had come from and caught a glimpse of something red sliding out of sight into the shadows under the piano.

Grinning now, he began to walk about, seemingly without direction, yet always moving closer to the far corner until he was standing next to the spot where the red had disappeared.

His grin widened into a smile of anticipation as he stood there, completely still for a few seconds more – and then suddenly bent over at the waist and boomed out a cheerful "Hello!" at the woman crouched there in the dark,

Liz started in shock, involuntarily rising up onto her knees then gasped in pain when the top of her head banged into the solid underside of the piano.

Letting her breath out in a heated rush, she glared at the man responsible and lost what little patience she had left.

"Are you demented?" she ground out through clenched teeth. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Now, now miss, there's no need to be rude," he chuckled, his cornflower blue eyes sparkling with puckish humor in his smooth, upside-down face.

She sighed in irritation and gave him an even darker look before beginning to crawl out.

"I think," he said in a conversational tone as he helped her get stiffly to her feet, "I should be asking you the same question."

"What question?" she almost managed to sound unconcerned while shaking her silk skirts back into place.

"'_What do you think you're doing?'_"

"Doing?" her wide-eyed, innocent look made him want to laugh, but he swallowed the urge admiring her nerve.

"Yes dear, what were you doing under that piano?"

"If you **must** know, I was following the advice of a very good friend," she answered shortly, lifting her pert nose in the air.

"Could your friend possibly be that unfortunate soul," he paused to sweep his lively blue gaze around the devastated room, "the man of honor at this shindig?" His brows rose when she took a step closer and her expression tightened.

"Why 'unfortunate soul'?" she demanded.

"Come now, you don't really think he'll be getting out of jail in time to make the wedding, do you?"

"And why not?" her color rose and her eyes sparked with anger. "These fights break out almost every Saturday night and no one stays in longer than it takes to sober up."

"Typically yes, but I'm afraid the best man got a little too rough with the chief's son and broke the twit's nose."

"I'm sure he deserved it!" she snapped, turned away, and marched off toward the back door.

"Hold on..." he hurried to catch up with her and reached over her shoulder to push the door shut just as she was pulling it open.

"Where are you going?"

She didn't answer for a moment and just stood there with her head bowed, her hand still wrapped around the doorknob.

"If you're going to arrest me do it now or let me go to find someone to help him." Her voice was low, but the depth of feeling he could hear in her words made him frown, surprised by a quick stab of jealousy.

"I take it then, that you and groom-to-be are more than just friends..." His tone was sharper than he intended and he had to take a hasty step back when she turned on him furiously.

"How dare you!" her eyes shone sherry-red with anger. "Adam Eden is a gentleman and would never be unfaithful to his intended, not even in thought!"

She propped her fisted hands on her hips and gave him a disdainful look. "And, I must add, has never treated me as anything less than a lady."

Amused again, he was aware of also feeling oddly relieved by her denial and he mentally laughed at himself.

"Well?" she demanded and he gave her a blank look.

"Well what?"

Heaving an exasperated sigh, she let her arms fall limp at her sides. "Are you going to arrest me or not?"

"Clearly it would be my duty as a policeman to take you in," he said in a mock serious tone, "that is if I happened to be one."

"You're not!"

"No my Lady, never have been and never will be."

Taking advantage of her open-mouthed silence, he reached to take her hand and tucked it into the crook of his elbow.

"And since your wish is my command, we had best be off to help your friend before it's too late."

He smiled down into her upturned face and his steady blue gaze met hers frankly. She smiled back for the first time and nearly took his breath away.

"Have you a plan in mind, my Lord?" she teased back and he felt almost giddy with delight.

"But of course, Madam," he answered lightly and reached to open the door.

"There's only one person I can think of who has enough clout in this city to be of any real help," he waved her through the door first.

"Are you well acquainted with this person then?" she asked hopefully and was reassured by his wide smile that flashed whitely in the dim light before he turned back to shut the door.

"Very well acquainted," he answered as she took his arm again, and they moved off into the warm darkness.

* * *

The gaslights in the cell corridors were turned down low for the night and the dank stonewalls glistened darkly in the dimly flickering light.

Every cell was full, the air thick with deeply rasping snores, and the only inmates still awake shared the smallest, barest space. Meant to be used as a holding cell, it only contained rough wooden benches that lined each solid wall of bars.

Adam sat on one side, alone, his arms folded across his chest and his legs, crossed at the ankle, stretched out in front of him. His fellow detectives huddled together on the bench opposite, carefully avoiding meeting Adam's darkly intense, unwavering stare. They kept their voices low, but were desperately wracking their brains to come up with a way out. Morning was only a few hours away and each man was painfully aware what would happen if Thea were stood up at the altar.

"I still say our best bet is to have young Johnnie here throw himself down on the floor and fake a fit," Mike insisted as he dabbed at a still oozing gash on his forehead with an already badly stained handkerchief.

"Why dudd id hab do be be?" John's bruised, badly swollen and cracked lips made his words hard to decipher.

"What?" Jerry asked again, his only contribution to the discussion for the last hour. Nate sighed, exasperated, his elbows propped on his knees and his head in his hands.

"He SAID, 'Why does it have to be me?'" The blond man lifted, and then shook his head.

"Boys, I just don't see any way out of this," he continued, his voice sounding as deeply pained as his huge black eye looked.

Jerry shifted on the bench and clapped one hard, badly mangled and bloodied hand on the back of the younger man's neck and shook him gently.

"Don't you mean no 'legal' way?"

Nate sighed again and gave in – turning his head to meet the older man's annoyingly cheerful expression.

"Alright Jerry, what do you have in mind?" Jerry's grin widened.

"Well young feller, t'would seem to me that desperate times call for desperate measures. The way I see it the only chance Adam has of making that wedding is if we break out of here – and soon!"

Mike and John exchanged quick questioning glances, and then brief nods of agreement.

"No," Adam spoke for the first time since entering the cell hours before, and the harsh, flat tone of his voice made it clear he would brook no argument.

"Pinkerton is going to give all of us a royal dressing down just for being arrested. Breaking out of jail is a serious offense and believe me he will show each one of us the door without a second's hesitation for breaking the law," he sat up and leaned forward, continuing to speak low, but forcefully.

"No," he repeated while taking in their stricken expressions.

"You mean you would rather miss the wedding, humiliate Thea and risk losing her rather than lose your job?" Mike was clearly appalled, his voice cracking incredulously with anger.

"Of course not and keep your voice down," Adam stood and shook his head at them. "I'm getting to that wedding come hell or high water, but I'm breaking out of here alone."

John smiled in relief, opening up the split in his lower lip again while Mike and Jerry opened their mouths to argue, but Nate cut them off.

"Shut up and think about it," he snapped. "It makes more sense that he'll be able to slip away unnoticed by himself." Taking a deep breath, he wearily rose to his feet.

"Chances are we'd more of a hindrance than a help…as usual." He lifted his gaze to meet Adam's for the first time since they'd been arrested. Unspoken apologies passed from man to man – one for causing the raid on the celebration, the other for the blond man's horrific black eye.

Jerry chuckled softly, "Well I'll be damned if that ain't true," he said as he got to his feet and moved to the door to inspect the lock.

"Ah…this should be an easy crack for Master John here, he's the most apt pupil I've ever had the pleasure to teach the craft of breaking." He motioned the younger man over.

John hurried to the door and went down on one knee as he pulled a narrow leather case from an inside jacket pocket.

"The boy's got the sensitive hands of an artist," he continued as he bent down to watch, his bloody, beaten hands braced on his bent knees.

"That's it…" he practically crooned, then laughed softly with deep satisfaction when the lock clicked open.

John got to his feet and turned to face Adam, trying to smile as he held his right hand out to the older man.

"Good lug, Adab," he managed to say then turned slightly red with embarrassment when Nate, Jerry, and Mike suddenly became almost undone, in danger of collapsing on the floor with nearly silent, gasping laughter.

"Don't pay any attention to them," Adam said quietly. "Thank you John," he continued while taking the younger man's hand in both of his own. Then moving quickly he slipped out the door and was gone with hardly a sound.

After giving his still snickering cell mates an exasperated look, John knelt again and began working on the lock again saying, "I dail do dee whad you dink id doh fuddy!"

Having his back to the others he heard rather than saw the three men fall to the floor, practically strangling on their mirth by trying to stay quiet. He sighed deeply and shook his head.

"Dood Dod," he said under his breath, "I'b logged ub wid a drio of idiods!"


End file.
